Lakers hoping offense wins championships

The Los Angeles Lakers didn't show much defense or bench production in their 142-130 win over the Chicago Bulls Thursday night. But when the starters combine to score 137 points, those things don't matter as much.

LeBron James returned from a three-game absence to score 18 points and hand out seven assists, and Luka Doncic had his highest-scoring game as a Laker with 51 points. The Lakers may not have the personnel or the mentality to lock down other teams on defense, but their explosive offense makes them dangerous against anyone.

Los Angeles Lakers' only offensive limitation is having one ball

While the Lakers thrived with James out, winning all three games handily, they got even better in his return. They had 31 assists while James, Doncic and Austin Reaves combined to shoot 37-of-64 (57.8 percent) and 13-of-23 on three-pointers.

All three of the Lakers' primary scorers are capable with the ball in their hands. Doncic averages 32.9 points, Reaves scores 23.9 and James is at 21.4 PPG. The problem is that the Lakers offense can devolve into the three players taking turns, since all of them can beat most defenders and create their own shot.

Lakers coach JJ Redick credited James for "making sure Luka and AR can be at their best" in his return, taking a backseat to the high-scoring Doncic. The team also got inconsistent center Deandre Ayton going for the second straight game, as he went 10-of-13 on his way to 23 points, one game after shooting 7-of-11.

Lakers defense might not need to be great

If the Lakers can keep scoring like this — they're scoring 122.5 points during their current 7-1 stretch — it may not matter that they're a bottom-10 defensive team. That's because for the Lakers, good offense solves one of their worst offensive problems.

The team struggles with transition defense, notoriously badly when it comes to getting back on defense. The best way to slow down opposing fastbreaks is to make a lot of shots. It's a lot easier to run off a defensive rebound than it is to run off a throw-in under the basket, which lets even the Lakers get their defense set.

They've also greatly cut down their turnovers, further reducing fast breaks. In the last 15 games, only the Orlando Magic have fewer turnovers. Thursday, the Lakers turned the ball over only nine times.

Some teams use their defense to jump-start their offense. The Lakers are using their offense to protect their defense. So far it's going very well.