Los Angeles Lakers All-Star LeBron James sounded helpless after LA’s Christmas Day loss to the Dallas MavericksCredit: Getty Images – Getty

The Lakers registered the worst quarter by an NBA team in 30 years when the Mavericks outscored them 51-21 in the third periodCredit: Reuters

Davis was one of the best players of the season in the first two months of the 2022-23 campaign.

But the forward has been sidelined indefinitely due to a foot injury and has already missed the last five games, with Los Angeles picking up only one win during that time.

In his absence, the Lakers haven’t been able to prevent their opponents from going on long scoring runs that often decide the result.

Going up against Luka Doncic and the Mavericks on Sunday, James and his team gave up 51 points in the third quarter while scoring only 21 themselves, squandering their 11-point halftime lead.

No NBA team has allowed 50 points or more and gotten outscored by at least 30 in a single period since 1989 — and Los Angeles has become only the third team in NBA history to record a quarter this bad.

The Lakers are trending down again after overcoming a slow 2022-23 start, making James wonder whether his team can still salvage this season.

“How many times are you going to try to dig yourselves out until it’s too much dirt on you?” the four-time NBA champion asked rhetorically after the Christmas Day defeat.

The Lakers went 2-10 to start 2022-23 before winning eight of the next 10 games, only to fall near the bottom of the Western Conference again with their current 13-20 record.

And James sounded ominously disillusioned when discussing the Lakers’ capability to weather another storm — having already expressed concerns over the 2022-23 roster’s construction in the previous weeks.

“At the end of the day, I love to play the game of basketball,” the 37-year-old All-Star said.

“I’m still enjoying going out there and playing in front of fans, either at home or on the road.

“And I’m just trying to control what I can control.

“I show up, try to lead these guys and try to lead to victories, and obviously there’s been times when it’s been frustrating. There’s been times that I’ve been happy.

“There’s been times where I’ve been like, ‘OK, we can do better here,’ or whatever the case may be.”

James himself averages 27.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 6.6 assists on the season after his 38-point performance against the Mavericks on Christmas Day.