The Los Angeles Lakers earned a 134-96 victory against the Washington Wizards on Thursday. LA will battle a much more challenging opponent on Saturday, however, as the Lakers prepare to play the New York Knicks on the road. JJ Redick provided two important injury updates ahead of the Knicks game, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

New York Knicks star forward Mikal Bridges saw his stretch of defensive excellence against some of the premier point guards

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Washington Wizards 134-96, bouncing back into the win column. The Lakers now stand at 27-19 on the season and are ranked as the No. 5 team in the Western Conference standings.

The Cat and the King will be starters at the NBA All-Star Game after they do battle as respective members of the New York ... A visit from James and the Lakers will be one of the Knicks' final ...

New York will try to keep its four-game home win streak alive when the Knicks play Los Angeles. The teams match up Saturday for the first time this season.

Out of the West, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers was named to his 21st straight All-Star Game, joined by 15-time All-Star Kevin Durant (Phoenix), 11-time All-Star Stephen Curry (Golden State), three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic (Denver) and MVP frontrunner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City).

In doing so, James (2,533) has now passed Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers legend Moses Malone (8,531) for the 2nd-most free throws made in NBA history. The NBA congratulated "King James" with a post on X.

Count Nikola Jokic as a believer in the Knicks. After absorbing a 122-112 defeat at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night, the three-time NBA MVP touted the Knicks as legitimate title contenders.

Playing without injured Anthony Davis, LeBron James has 24 points and 11 assists and six others score in double figures as the Lakers dominate from the outset in a 134-96 win.

Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick was very open about the limitations his team is dealing with after a loss on Sunday against the crosstown rival Clippers. "We don't have a huge margin for error," Redick admitted during his postgame press conference.

With Anthony Davis out, LeBron James finishes with 24 points in just 27 minutes of playing time to lead the Lakers to a 134-96 win over the Wizards.