Already the top scorer in NBA history after passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387 points) last season, the 38-year-old James became the first player in league history to top 39,000 points early in the first quarter.

“I got congratulated by my teammates and coaches, (but) I haven’t had an opportunity to really wrap my head around what that means,” James said. “There’s been so many great players that came across this league since the beginning of time, and so many great scorers. To be able to accomplish something that’s the first of anything, I think that’s always pretty cool. It’s a wild moment, that’s for sure.”

The milestone was another stop in James´ steamrolling of the world’s previous standards for basketball longevity: He began the night averaging 26.4 points per game, by far the most production from any player in NBA history who made it to a 21st season.

D’Angelo Russell added 20 points and eight assists for the Lakers, who went up by 30 in the third quarter and got their two superstars out of the game for good before the fourth began. James played only 24 minutes, while Davis dominated his 29 minutes, going 11 of 14 and even adding four assists.

“Being able to sleep in our beds and not having to travel, that’s always good,” Davis said of the Lakers’ tournament position. “We’re one step closer to winning the, uh, Cup? Is it the tournament Cup? NBA Cup? Something like that? So, one step closer.”

Austin Reaves scored 19 points and Christian Wood had a season-high 16 while Los Angeles improved to 7-1 at home this season and Utah fell to 1-6 on the road.

John Collins scored 15 points and Omer Yurtseven had a season-high 18 for the undersized Jazz, who dropped to 2-2 in tournament play with their seventh loss in nine games overall. Utah shot dismally, hitting only 33% of its shots in the first half.

“They did a good job of just closing the floor on us and taking all the space that we had and forcing us to take tough shots,” said former Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson, who scored seven points on 3-of-9 shooting.