'Never fun to not have LeBron' – Lakers miss ill James despite victory

James, the NBA's all-time leading points scorer, missed his third game of the season against the Kings, who were playing under interim coach Doug Christie after firing Mike Brown.

However, they got 36 points from Anthony Davis and 26 from Reaves, who also contributed a career-high 16 assists, in a 132-122 victory.

That was their second successive win and their fifth in their last six games, lifting them to 18-13 following a difficult spell earlier in December.

After the game, coach JJ Redick played down fears regarding James' condition, saying: "It's no concern, he's just a little under the weather."

Despite James' absence being covered by the efforts of Davis, Reaves and Rui Hachimura, who had 21 points, the Lakers know they need the four-time MVP back soon.

Reaves said: "It's really just about playing the game the right way, trusting the offense, the system that we have.

"It's never fun to not have Bron. He creates so much chaos and security for us. But it's just a collective group.

"Everybody knows that they've got to step up and do something too for us to be successful."