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While the game didn’t provide any definitive answers about what LeBron James will do in his record-breaking 23rd season, it offered promising signs about what he won’t do.

He won’t disrupt what the Lakers are doing.

James indirectly said that leading up to his season debut on Tuesday and he indirectly said that again after.

The point was made most emphatically by how he played in the 140-126 victory over the Utah Jazz at Crypto.com Arena.

Read more:LeBron James returns and hands out 12 assists as Lakers defeat the Jazz

In the 30 minutes he played, James shot the ball only seven times, less than any other Lakers starter.

He didn’t have problems with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves remaining the team’s primary options.

He didn’t mind picking his spots.

He didn’t mind spending most of the game as a peripheral figure on the court.

“Just thought he played with the right spirit,” coach JJ Redick said. “Very unselfish all night. Willing passer. Didn’t force it. Took his drive and his shots when they were there.”

The 40-year-old James acknowledged that his conditioning remained a problem — “Wind was low,” he said — but he played so much within himself that he never looked visibly fatigued.

This is what the Lakers needed from James on Tuesday, as it allowed them to build on the 10-4 record they compiled in the games he missed because of sciatica. And this could be the kind of mindset the Lakers will need James to adopt for the remainder of the season, especially if Doncic and Reaves continue to score at their current rates.

“I don’t have to worry about [chemistry],” James said.

James sounded offended by questions implying he could have trouble fitting in with the team.

“I don’t even understand why that was a question,” he said.

Concerns over his ability to meld with his particular team were never based on his basketball IQ or skillset but instead how open he would be to accepting a reduced role.

This is a player who was the centerpiece of every team on which he’d ever played. This is also a player who craves attention and is notoriously passive aggressive.

In retrospect, suggesting that James couldn’t adapt to a new role might have sold him short. Whatever he’s said off the court, he’s usually made the right decisions on them.

“There’s not one team, not one club, in the world that I cannot fit in and play for,” James said the day before his return. “I can do everything on the floor. So whatever this team needs me to do, I can do it when I’m back to myself.”

Or even before that.

James scored only 11 points against the Jazz, but he still had his moments.

Starting in the final second of the third quarter, James assisted on seven of the next eight Lakers baskets, a four-minute-30-second stretch over which the team extended its lead from eight to 17.

From the left wing, James found Gabe Vincent in the opposite corner for an open three.

Double-teamed at the top of the key, James dropped a bounce pass to Jaxson Hayes, who soared for an open dunk.

James flipped a couple of no-look passes to Deandre Ayton and delivered a backdoor assist from the post to Jake LaRavia.

James finished with a game-high 12 assists.

“Good player,” Reaves said.

Describing his frustration over not playing the previous 14 games, James said he was grateful to just be playing.

"A lot of joy,” he said. “You probably saw me smiling and talking a lot on the court today.”

But he also sounded as if he wanted to prove something.

Read more:'The dude's a machine': Three takeaways from LeBron James' return to the Lakers

“I said it, was it yesterday’s practice, post practice?” James said. “I can fit in with anybody.”

Carefully watching his teammates in the games that he missed, James said he pictured where he could position himself and how he could contribute.

James will average more than 11 points this season. He’s still too good to not. But the Lakers almost certainly won’t need him to average 24 points as he did last season. How open he is to that could determine if they are just a playoff team or a legitimate contender.

The start was optimistic.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

It was the first time Deandre Ayton played in a game on the same team as LeBron James, but not the first time they had connected on an alley-oop. That first bucket came when the now-27-year-old Ayton was in eighth grade. It was at James’ basketball camp in Las Vegas.

“I finished it,” Ayton said with a bewildered smile. “I couldn’t believe he threw it. Here I am again. I can’t believe he threw the lob.”

James’ return from sciatica spurred the Lakers to a 140-126 win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena. The NBA’s all-time leading scorer made his impact while in play-making mode, dishing 12 assists — including the lob to Ayton in the second quarter — with 11 points and just one turnover. During the first quarter, James was honored on the big screen for being the first player to start his 23rd NBA season. He waved modestly to the crowd. He doesn’t play like it’s been that long.

Read more:LeBron James returns and hands out 12 assists as Lakers defeat the Jazz

“Running next to him, he’s running as fast as me down the floor,” Ayton said. “You don’t think that it’s his 23rd year. The dude’s a machine.”

Here are three takeaways from James’ first game of the season:

Good vibes always

The Lakers (11-4) accomplished plenty without James during their first 14 games. Luka Doncic jump-started his most valuable player campaign and rose to the top of the NBA scoring leaderboard. Austin Reaves is averaging career highs nearly across the board. Some wondered how much the team would really benefit from James’ return when it started 10-4 already.

Then the Lakers scored a season-high 140 points, shot a season-best 59.5% from the field and locked down on defense to allow just 32 points in the first 21 minutes of the second half before the benches cleared.

“I can fit in with anybody,” James said. “I don’t even understand why that was a question.”

Doncic continued his scoring spree with 37 points and 10 assists, but with eight turnovers. Reaves had 26 points.

The Lakers lauded their early-season chemistry, and coach JJ Redick praised his players for leading themselves through difficult times. He purposely restructured timeouts to give players time to discuss alone before the coaches would join them, hoping that the opportunities for player-to-player communication would prompt stronger team connection. Adding James’ voice to the conversation was an easy transition.

“Us as a young team, I’m glad we got hold of accountability before LeBron got out there,” Ayton said. “I’m glad we went through some tough games and a little of hardships and ups and downs and adversity. And it made us prepare for times like this where he says one thing and we get it done right away.”

The Jazz (5-9) knocked the Lakers back with guard Keyonte George making five threes in the first half and 23 points on nine-for-15 shooting. Utah jumped out to a 11-point lead in the first half, but the Lakers tied it with 18.8 seconds left in the second quarter and went into halftime down by four, prepared to make a push.

“I think the word we were using as a coaching staff was our poise as a group,” Redick said. “Not overreacting, not pulling apart, problem solving, all that stuff, in real time. Just continuing to play. That, at times, was missing last year, and for us to get that on the first night [fully healthy] was really good."

Second-half surge

The Lakers shot a blistering 65.9% from the field in the second half en route to their season-best scoring performance, but they said the catalyst was their defense. The Lakers finished the third quarter on a 21-5 run, capped by a three-pointer from Gabe Vincent when he scooped a low James pass seemingly off his shoelaces and hoisted it at the buzzer. The Lakers forced 11 missed shots during the run and allowed just two offensive rebounds, finishing defensive possessions quickly on the glass and pushing the ball ahead.

“I’m starting to realize this team, what gets us going is our defensive stops,” said Ayton, who finished with 20 points and 14 rebounds. “That’s what keeps our momentum push[ing].”

After giving up 71 points in the first half, Redick challenged his team at halftime to simply guard. George had just 11 points in the second half. Markkanen was held to just nine.

The Lakers have shown stretches of defensive dominance in the last two games. They locked Milwaukee down for 34 points in the first half last Saturday.

Odd men out

The Lakers were whole for the first time this season as Vincent (ankle) also returned alongside James. With the whole roster finally at his disposal, Redick changed up the rotation that left some mainstays on the bench.

Jarred Vanderbilt, who was averaging 18.4 minutes per game and was one of just two players who had appeared in all of the Lakers’ first 14 games, didn’t play Tuesday. Marcus Smart, who had starred in his role as a tenacious defender and tertiary ball-handler without James, played just 17 minutes off the bench, his fewest of the year. He finished with five points, one made three-pointer and three rebounds.

Read more:LeBron James is back. What's next for the Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves-led Lakers?

After signing with the Lakers as a free agent, Smart was a potential candidate to move into the starting lineup this season, but with all 14 standard contract players available for the first time, Redick stuck Rui Hachimura in the starting unit. Hachimura, who finished with six points and four rebounds Tuesday, had been averaging a career-high 15.8 points on sizzling 57.7% shooting. He started along with Ayton, Reaves, Doncic and James, who played 29 minutes and 37 seconds and could have played longer if the team needed him in a close game, Redick said.

“We're going to make decisions based on how the team is playing and how the groups work together,” Redick said. “It's not, like, beholden to one thing throughout the season. But I feel comfortable with that lineup. They've played a ton of minutes together at the end of last season, minus DA, so we'll continue to build on that."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Knicks are 8-5 despite working their way through the implementation of a new offense and injuries to their best player and another starter. 

While the early results are solid, there are some weak points that have become apparent and are worth monitoring as the season progresses. 

Here are the three biggest questions facing New York early this season...

Are they too small?

A recurring image in these early games has looked something like this: the Knicks miss a shot and try to get back defensively, but some 6’7” wing already has Landry Shamet pinned underneath the basket for an easy score or foul. Mismatches happen, but New York is generally running smaller lineups than prior years -- arguably a necessity for this offense to work and the team to get enough ball-handling.

The simplest way to portray this trend: Josh Hart and OG Anunoby’s minutes per game have fallen from 74.2 last season to 56.6, with Shamet and Jordan Clarkson taking on much of those minutes. The Knicks are top three in offense, but there is a downside to that trade-off in that you allow more favorable matchups and require more defensive rotations and help. 

To quantify how big this issue is, New York ranks 16th defensively. But the damage is being done from three -- not the paint. How much of that is due to needing to help these smaller guards is the question.

There’s definitely a blow-by problem with the aforementioned names, especially once you throw in Jalen Brunson, on top of the size issue. These three-guard units should look much better if that’s tightened up.

New York could theoretically look to its bench for some added bulk on the wings, but Guerschon Yabusele is struggling to find his spot in the rotation and has largely played center, while their next best options are unproven youngsters Pacome Dadiet or Mohamed Diawara. The idea was for the new head coach to experiment more with these guys, but perhaps the staff and front office have closed the lab for now. 

This likely won’t end up a long-term or debilitating issue with options at the end of the bench and trade deadline, not to mention simply playing bigger lineups when the time comes. Head coach Mike Brown is likely doing his due diligence in leaning on these smaller lineups, in hopes of getting them ready for the big stage. 

Do they need another depth upgrade?

Do the Knicks actually have enough on their bench? Their headline-grabbing offseason upgrades of Yabusele and Clarkson, healthy management of Mitchell Robinson, and unlocking of Shamet have all resulted in, once again, a championship-level nine-man rotation with a cliff dive in talent beyond that.

Yabusele has amassed 30 points on the season, Robinson is restricted, and none of the young talent that withered on last year’s bench has shown enough to demand alternative treatment this season. Tyler Kolek hasn’t gotten burn with Brunson hurt.

If the deep bench is truly that unplayable, it seems almost imperative that the Knicks add to it. Unfortunately, their options are scant.

The trade market will open up in less than a month, but with how close the Knicks and other teams are playing it to the new apron rules, finding the right deal will be tricky. If they want to truly upgrade they’ll likely have to deal one rotation piece for two, further limiting them.

There are still intriguing free agents out there like Spencer Dinwiddie, Ben Simmons, Markelle Fultz, and Alec Burks, but the Knicks would need to make room to sign any of them. None would likely move the needle much, but that’s not what’s needed.

Ultimately, the Knicks just need a couple of guys to be ready should injuries or other circumstance befall them in their championship hunt. They should exist on the current roster, but until we see it this will be an ongoing concern.

Will the three-point defense improve?

Despite all the changes stemming from a swap in head coach, much of this team remains the same, like their defensive geography. New York is keeping with tradition in bottling up the paint, even throwing out new coverages we’ve yet to see to do so, at risk of giving up threes.

New York's foes are absolutely lacing them right now, as the Knicks are bottom five in opponent three-point accuracy. A good part of this is luck, as they’re making a very high amount of open looks, but they’re also getting too many, which should be a point of focus given New York’s average defensive performance.

This is reminiscent of prior years, as the Knicks historically helped aggressively one pass away and prioritized protecting the paint. The flavor is a bit different as they’ve thrown in different pick coverages and even some zone, but the issue is familiar and should improve over time.

Simply better, more engaged point to attack defense will help cut down on drives that send helpers into the blender. They can also get a little more selective with their switching depending on matchup and game flow.

If opponents slow down the three point barrage, that should also bump their numbers. Many times, we’ve seen seasons start with the Knicks getting rained on only for things to subside.