LeBron James scores 40 points in LA Lakers win over New Orleans Pelicans
- Published
Lakers v Pelicans: Ric Flair, LeBron James and Zion Williamson
LeBron James scored a season-high 40 points as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the New Orleans Pelicans 118-109.
The three-time NBA champion scored 16 points in the third quarter, while team-mate Anthony Davis finished with 21 points.
Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson, playing the Lakers for the first time, scored 29 points.
"The kid is special man, they got a good one in him," James, 35, said of Williamson.
Williamson, 19, who was the number one draft pick, missed the first 44 games of the season with a knee injury.
But in his 13 games since his debut in late January, he has averaged 23.3 points a game and scored 20 points or more in 11 games.
The Lakers have now won six in a row and lead the Western Conference with 44 wins and 12 losses, while the Pelicans are 10th and three wins away from the last play-off spot.
Elsewhere, the Eastern Conference leaders the Milwaukee Bucks beat reigning NBA champions the Toronto Raptors 108-97 for their 50th win this season.