A month into the NBA season, the scoring race already has a shape. And one of the biggest surprises is sitting in Los Angeles. The Lakers are 10-4 without LeBron James, something that no one expected. But perhaps the answer lies in the leaderboard. The Lakers have two top 10 scorers, and neither one is LeBron. It’s Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, who are carrying the weight, night in and night out.
1. Luka Doncic – 34.4 PPG
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo – 32.6 PPG
3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – 32.6 PPG
4. Tyrese Maxey – 32.0 PPG
5. Lauri Markkanen – 30.6 PPG
6. Donovan Mitchell – 30.4 PPG
7. Nikola Jokic – 28.7 PPG
8. Devin Booker – 28.4 PPG
9. Austin Reaves – 28.3 PPG
10. Jalen Brunson – 28.0 PPG
Luka being here isn’t shocking. He leads the league at 34.4 points per game. This is the version the Lakers planned for when they traded for him. The offense belongs to him. The pace belongs to him. Even with extra bodies thrown at him every game, he looks calm. He looks in control. He is mixing step-backs, bully drives, and post touches. Everything slows down when he has the ball. The Lakers need him to score every night, and he has delivered.
Reaves at number nine is the part nobody predicted. He is averaging 28.3 points per game. He isn’t just having hot streaks. He’s carrying entire stretches of offense. He’s closing games. He’s hitting from everywhere. His footwork looks cleaner. His pull-up is reliable. His finishing looks stronger. Something clicked once the season began, and LeBron’s absence pushed him into a bigger role. He hasn’t backed down once.
The rest of the top ten looks familiar. Giannis Antetokounmpo is right behind Luka at 32.6 points. He still looks unstoppable. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is tied with him. He’s playing like someone who just won a championship and an MVP. Oklahoma City looks ready for another deep run. Tyrese Maxey is giving the Sixers the burst they needed. He looks like a guard built for this kind of workload.
Lauri Markkanen is doing everything for Utah at 30.6. Donovan Mitchell is at 30.4 and keeping Cleveland steady. Devin Booker is back to being the unquestioned number one option in Phoenix. Jalen Brunson sits tenth, the one constant the Knicks can trust every single night.
But everything circles back to Los Angeles.
The Lakers haven’t just survived without LeBron. They’ve learned something about themselves. They can win with Luka and Reaves handling the scoring load. They can build offense without leaning on LeBron to do everything and now they’re close to full strength again. LeBron could return as soon as Tuesday against Utah.
The numbers will dip for Luka and Reaves once he’s back. That’s normal. But this stretch showed something more important. The Lakers finally have two scorers who can take pressure off LeBron, not add to it. And when the three of them share the floor, Los Angeles suddenly looks like one of the most dangerous offensive groups in the league.
