LeBron James takes an old-fashioned approach to lead the Lakers past the Jazz

The clock was ticking and, as it had been for most of the last two decades of professional basketball, the ball was in the hands of LeBron James.

That’s been the recipe for years: James hunts down the opponent on the court he wants, then methodically overcomes them with a combination of speed, strength and skill unparalleled in most NBA history.

But that’s not the basketball JJ Redick wants the Lakers to play, and honestly, that might not be the best version of basketball for a player of his 22 years^nd NBA season, even if that player scored more points than anyone else to ever play in the league.

“This is my lowest usage rate of my career,” James said later Sunday night. “So it’s a change.”

But with the Lakers missing Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell and the young Jazz defense vulnerable to bullying, the Lakers made changes.

“It felt normal to me,” James said. “But the way we want to play this year is a little different and I’m getting used to it too.”

On Sunday, the styles collided when James did it the old-fashioned way in the fourth quarter of the Lakers’ 105-104 win over the Jazz.

“We really slowed down in the second half and tried to get the matchup we wanted so LeBron could handle that pick-and-roll,” Redick said. “And honestly, that was the best offense we could produce. So whether we missed it or made it, we just kept going. I thought we got a clean look that could have given us a bit more padding. But I liked our execution on offense.”

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During the fourth period, James tirelessly tried to find ways to score and the Lakers attacked Keyonte George, Utah’s second-year guard. On a crucial fourth-period possession, the Lakers grabbed one offensive rebound after another, but James missed three three-pointers on the same possession.

James took 14 shots in the fourth quarter, more than he had in four games this season. He only made five and missed all six of his threes.

Still, James had 27 and Anthony Davis 33, the two combining for 53 of the Lakers’ 88 shot attempts.

“As a team, we said today, ‘LeBron and AD should shoot 25 or more times tonight.’ We achieved this goal,” said Redick. “That was our best offense tonight.”

They dodged a bullet in the fourth when the Jazz had a chance to win, although Utah coach Will Hardy called a timeout when Collin Sexton drove to the basket and scored the basket that could have clinched the win.

“I quit,” Davis said. “In the end he did it. I don’t know if he would have made it in the end. I probably would have blocked it.”

The Lakers could still be behind when it comes to Reaves, Russell and Cam Reddish on Monday in Minneapolis.

The symptoms for those affected are real. For Russell and Reddish, illnesses made it impossible for them to come to the arena on Sunday. And for Reaves, it was the soreness from a scary fall on Friday that made even standing a bit of a precarious situation.

But the NBA world is unsympathetic. And problems for Reaves, Russell and Reddish meant opportunities for Gabe Vincent, Max Christie and forgotten second-year guard Jalen Hood-Schifino.

Reaves’ back injury, which the Lakers are describing as a left pelvic contusion, ended a streak of 129 consecutive regular-season games that also included 21 playoff games, two play-in games and a season finale.

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Entering a four-game trip without 40% of their regular rotation (including the injured Jaxson Hayes), the players around James and Davis had no choice but to figure it out.

Vincent scored a season-high 10 points and forced a crucial late turnover when he aggressively defended John Collins in the post. Christie recovered from his late-game fumble against Oklahoma City to score 12 points and grab five rebounds. And Hood-Schifino, playing in his first game since the Lakers declined their third-year option on his rookie contract, contributed on defense.

“We have a saying: No matter who plays, it’s how we play that matters,” Davis said.

On Sunday they did it differently. Monday, it might have to be the other way around. And that’s more than okay.

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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.