Five takeaways from the Lakers’ 115-99 loss to the Denver Nuggets

Wednesday night story line was dominated by LeBron James passing Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list. It was a big moment for NBA history and especially for James, who grew up a Jordan super-fan.

The game itself was less uplifting for the Lakers.

Here are five takeaways from the Lakers’ 115-99 loss to the Nuggets.

1. James was asked if the Lakers’ loss dampened his accomplishment. “Absolutely,” James said. “At the end of the day, we’re still struggling, and I hate that for our franchise, I hate that for our fans, I hate that for myself. I give a lot of credit to Alex [Harper] and Moe [Wagner] and J3 [Josh Hart], them coming in and having [not] played all year, and basically giving us an opportunity to try to win that game. It was special to see those guys play the way they play and showcase their talent, especially on national television.”

2. Both teams entered the game on four-game losing streaks, but the Lakers were hobbled as well. Lonzo Ball was still out with an ankle injury, as was Kyle Kuzma, and Brandon Ingram was out with shoulder soreness. Lance Stephenson played 9:25 in his first game back from a toe sprain.

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3. Coach Luke Walton wouldn’t say the Lakers had started thinking yet about preserving their players by limiting their minutes the rest of the season, but Wednesday’s game got out of hand so quickly that it afforded him an opportunity to do so. Hart got the most playing time — 38 minutes and 41 seconds — but no one else was even close to 40 minutes. James, who played around or more than 40 minutes in the previous three games, only played 31 minutes.

4. While the starters mostly sat, the Lakers’ reserves brought the team back from what was a 23-point deficit. That group included Johnathan Williams, Alex Caruso and the rookie Wagner. At a few points, the Lakers trailed only by two. “I said we’re looking for guys that are going to play the way we need to play,” Walton said. “I understand where we’re at with the injuries, but there’s a certain way to play this game and the respect you show for the game. We found it in the second half with a couple different groups .… Win or lose that’s how we need to play.”

5. Rajon Rondo only scored four points but had 11 assists and two steals. Toward the end of the game, Rondo was spied sitting several seats away from the Lakers bench (on the other side of rapper 2 Chainz). He’s done this before. The image in Indianapolis of James sitting next to a few empty seats on the bench showed Rondo in some fan seats as well. I spoke to Rondo about this a few weeks ago. He said he’s done it before and just enjoys sitting there. The seats are usually occupied at Staples Center.

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Follow Tania Ganguli on Twitter @taniaganguli