Los Angeles: LeBron James is a winner for the first time as a Laker.
James scored 18 points in a back-and-forth first half before resting in the second half, watching his teammates pull out a 128-123 preseason victory over the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night.
Brandon Ingram missed two free throws with 10 seconds left, but Kyle Kuzma tipped in the second miss to give the Lakers a 126-123 lead. Wenyen Gabriel had a good look at a tying 3-pointer but it hit the front of the rim.
Ingram finished with 31 points, 11 from the free throw line.
De’Aaron Fox scored all of his 18 points in the first half, going 4 of 6 from 3-point range for Sacramento. Second overall pick Marvin Bagley III had 19 points and 10 rebounds.
