Lakers' Dominant Win Over Warriors Proves They Should Rest LeBron James More Often

Lost in the Los Angeles Lakers' thoroughly dominant campaign that sees them with a 5.5-game cushion atop the Western Conference has been the lack of games LeBron James has rested.

Of a possible 57 tilts, James has played in a whopping 54. Now, you might think the Lakers are downright mismanaging their most important player, but the team's plus-minus with LeBron off the court is quite alarming.

However, the Lakers managed to overcome that narrative in a dominant road victory against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night, and it proves that the franchise MUST prioritize resting James against lesser opponents from this point forward.

We understand the Warriors are the NBA's worst team this season, but the Lakers showcased a rapport and swagger without LeBron on the court that we simply hadn't seen before Thursday. The most reassuring part of the win was the fact Anthony Davis wasn't tasked with carrying the load on offense.

Though AD chipped in with 23 points, five Lakers -- Kyle Kuzma, Avery Bradley, Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard -- eclipsed double digits in scoring. There's no reason to think that can't continue if the team sporadically rests LeBron and his "sore groin."

It's time for the Lakers to start thinking long term here. LeBron obviously boasts a durability we've never seen before at his age (35), but running him into the ground in meaningless regular season games will catch up to them in the playoffs.

Taking a page out of Kawhi Leonard's load management playbook should be priority numero uno for the Lakers. LeBron's sidekicks proved against Golden State that they can dispose of bottom-barrel teams.