Toronto Raptors beat LeBron and Lakers without Kawhi: 4 takeaways

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LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 04: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts to his foul in front of Josh Hart #3 during a 121-107 Toronto Raptor win at Staples Center on November 4, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

3) Raptors shut LeBron down

Everyone was wondering how the Raptors would perform against James, especially with Leonard sitting. this game out. In the end, there was nothing to worry about.

Nurse’s team overwhelmed the Lakers, giving James little chance to exert his influence. OG Anunoby‘s defense in particular was impressive, as he was tasked with covering the four-time NBA MVP in the absence of Leonard.

By the end of the night, James had set season lows of 18 points and just two boards, to compete a miserable night. (He also had six dimes, tied for his third-fewest of the season.)

Skeptics may point to how average this Lakers team is, but they were on a run of four wins in six games entering Sunday night; in addition, this is still King James. Regardless, as reported by Sports Illustrated, he gave the Raptors their due credit for a complete performance:

"“They’ve been playing like they’re the best team in the Eastern Conference so far. They just came out and hit us right in the mouth, and it’s going to be very hard to make a game of that when you’re trying to expend so much energy to get back into it.”"

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