Phoenix Suns rewind: LeBron, Davis take over in 4th quarter, Lakers edge Suns

The Phoenix Suns (1-1) lost at the Los Angeles Lakers, 100-95, on Wednesday.

L.A.'s All-Star tandem LeBron James and Anthony Davis took over in the fourth quarter as the Lakers (1-1) outscored Phoenix 28-11. James scored 10 of his 21 points with game-high nine assists and eight rebounds. Davis had team-bests 30 points, 13 rebounds, three steals, and game-high three blocks.

Kevin Durant drove the Suns behind his game-high 39 points on 50% shooting, added a team-high 11 rebounds, two assists and a block, and committed the most eight turnovers.

Phoenix's top defender against L.A. was Jordan Goodwin, who produced 12 points, five rebounds (all from Lakers misses), two assists and two steals.

Phoenix will play its home opener next, this Saturday against the Utah Jazz.

Suns gain largest lead entering 4th quarter

Kevin Durant was lights out in the third quarter.

Phoenix extended its lead to 84-72 on a buzzer-beating deep two by Durant, who has 30 points.

Anthony Davis has the Lakers' team-high 17 points, D'Angelo Russell has 14, and LeBron James has 11.

Lakers, Suns trade runs in 2nd quarter

Phoenix leads L.A. 52-48 at halftime.

L.A. went on a 20-5 run after Durant was on the bench during the quarter’s first six minutes.

LeBron James gained steam in the second quarter, scoring all 11 of his points (4-of-5 FG) and added four rebounds, four assists and a blocked shot.

Lakers took their first lead of the game at 36-35 on a 3 from Anthony Davis at 6:23.

Phoenix regained the lead as they went on a 15-3 run after Durant returned, and extended Phoenix’s largest lead to eight around the two minute mark. Durant had nine of his game-high 15 points during that run.

Phoenix's primary ballhandlers tonight, Eric Gordon and Jordan Goodwin, have been solid on both ends of the floor. Gordon has 12 points in 14 minutes, and Goodwin has 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting, two rebounds, and a steal in 16 minutes off the bench.

Suns end 1st quarter on run to lead Lakers

Phoenix is ahead 30-18 over L.A.

Kevin Durant has six points (3-of-8 FG) for Phoenix, and Yusuf Nurkic has the game-high seven rebounds.

Phoenix ended the opening period on a 16-2 run.

Lakers pay tribute to Suns coach Vogel

Frank Vogel is getting love from the Lakers in his return to L.A.

During a timeout in the first quarter, the Lakers showed their Crypto.com Arena crowd a one-minute tribute video to the Suns coach.

Vogel led the Lakers to the 2020 title in the bubble. He coached in L.A. for three seasons before he was fired after he 2021-22 season.

Phoenix hired Vogel in June.

Suns, Lakers starting lineups

Eric Gordon and Grayson Allen will be the starting backcourt for Phoenix to replace the injured Devin Booker (foot) and Bradley Beal (back). This will be Allen's second consecutive start since he stepped in for Beal for Phoenix's win at the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday.

The remaining Phoenix starters are Kevin Durant and Josh Okogie, and Yusuf Nurkic at the pivot.

Los Angeles is starting LeBron James, Anthony Davis, forwards Taurean Prince and Austin Reaves, and D'Angelo Russell running the point.

Booker, Beal out, Durant vs. LeBron in for Suns at Lakers

The Big 3's season debut playing together for Phoenix will have to wait again.

The Republic's Suns beat writer Duane Rankin reported from the team's Thursday morning pregame shootaround that both Devin Booker (left foot soreness) and Bradley Beal (lower back tightness) will miss Thursday's game against the Lakers.

Beal hasn't played since the team's preseason home win against the Portland Trail Blazers on Oct. 16, including Phoenix's preseason-closing win against L.A. last Thursday. Booker has been dealing with soreness in his big left toe, but he played in Tuesday's opener, scoring a game-high 32 points in the win over Golden State.

However, the consolation for the Lakers' matchup is seeing Kevin Durant against LeBron James. It will be the first regular-season matchup between the two All-Stars since Christmas 2018, when Durant was with the Warriors. (They did face each other in the final preseason game last week). The matchup between L.A.'s Anthony Davis and the Suns' new big Jusuf Nurkic also will be worth watching.

Durant also praised the NBA's all-time leading scorer James at the shootaround as one of the "top two players of all-time," and added that he's “looking forward to hooping against arguably the best ever.”

More: Phoenix Suns, Lakers deliver marquee matchups starting with Kevin Durant vs. LeBron James

Suns-Lakers picks, predictions

Check out these NBA picks and predictions for the Suns vs. Lakers matchup, which can be seen at 7 p.m. MST on TNT (stream with free trial from FUBO).

The Lakers are favored to win Tuesday's NBA game, per odds from BetMGM Sportsbook. The Lakers are -1.5 against the spread, while the Suns are +1.5.

L.A. is favored by -1.5, L.A. is -125 on the moneyline, while Phoenix is +105, and the over/under (point total) is set at 229.5 points, per BetMGMSportsbook.

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More: Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers picks, predictions, odds: Who wins NBA game Thursday?

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns rewind: LeBron, Davis lead Lakers over Suns