Lakers' JJ Redick: LeBron James 'Defies' Age After Scoring 40 Points vs. Blazers

Coming off two ugly losses, LeBron James took matters into his own hands to get the Los Angeles Lakers back on track with a dominant outing in Thursday's 110-102 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.

After James dropped 40 points in 36 minutes, Lakers head coach JJ Redick said the future Hall of Famer "defies" age.

Austin Reaves added to Redick's assessment, noting James doesn't have anything left to prove before joking that anyone who says he does is a Michael Jordan fan.

The Lakers were playing on the second night of a back-to-back against the Blazers. Luka Dončić was held out as he continues to work his way back into playing shape after missing six weeks due to a strained calf.

Even with those factors working against the Lakers, James carried them to a victory by shooting 14-of-24 from the field. He also grabbed eight rebounds, dished out four assists and had two steals.

James became the first player in NBA history to have multiple 40-point games after turning 40 years old. Jordan was the only other player to have at least one game with 40 points at the age of 40.

This is the second time in his last five games that LeBron has hit 40 points. He dropped 42 in a 120-112 win over the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 6.

The win moved the Lakers back to 12 games over the .500 mark (33-21). They gained a game over the Los Angeles Clippers (31-24), who lost to the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night, for the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference.

There's not a lot of time for James to rest. The Lakers will travel to Ball Arena for a huge showdown against Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets in prime time on Saturday night.