PORTLAND, Ore. — The Lakers’ injuries are stacking up, and that proved too much to overcome on Saturday night.

Shaedon Sharpe had 25 points to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 132-116 victory over the Lakers, who were playing without league-leading scorer Luka Doncic and starting center Deandre Ayton then saw veteran guard Marcus Smart limp to the locker room before the night was over.

Smart had a team-high 25 points for the Lakers before leaving midway through the fourth quarter. The extent of his injury was not known.

LeBron James finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as the Lakers lost for the fifth time in their past six games. Drew Timme scored a career-high 21 points off the bench.

“At the end of the day, nobody is feeling sorry for us, nor are we looking for it,” James said. “The guys that are available, we got to go out there and play our game, play the way we want to play offensively and defensively and just try to right the ship until we get whole.”

Doncic, who is averaging 33.6 points per game, did not play because of left groin soreness. Lakers coach JJ Redick said before the game that Doncic’s MRI was clear and he’s considered day-to-day. Doncic was dealing with the injury all of last week despite playing against the Kings, Hawks and Hornets on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.

“I think it was an accumulation of a longer week, more lingering, if anything,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said before the game.

The Lakers (24-16) aren’t sure if Ayton will play against Toronto on Sunday night. He is day-to-day with left knee soreness.

“He took a hit in his knee and there was no swelling, just some soreness,” Redick said.

The Lakers, who have been without starting guard Austin Reaves since last month, were also without backup center Jaxson Hayes, who didn’t play against the Blazers because of left hamstring tendinopathy. Redick said there’s a chance Hayes will be able to play Sunday.

Redick said he liked his team’s competitive “spirit” against the Blazers, but they are finding it hard to win consistently with so many rotation players out.

“This has been our season,” Redick said. “You get one guy healthy, another guy gets injured. You get one guy back and another guy gets injured. Two guys go out tonight and you play without your two centers. So, it’s been our season.”

Jerami Grant and Caleb Love each scored 22 points and Donovan Clingan finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Blazers (21-22), who have won seven of their past nine games.

The Lakers were called for 13 fouls in the first quarter, leading to 22 free-throw attempts for the Blazers, who closed the quarter on an 18-4 run for a 40-27 lead.

“I thought the whistle was very shot in the first quarter,” James said. “I think there were like maybe 17, 18, 20 free throws in the first quarter. It’s hard to set your defense with that type of situation. But we gave ourselves a chance a couple of times, but it was an uphill battle.”

The Moda Center crowd still cheered loudly when James dunked to close the Lakers within 53-47 in the second quarter, but Portland expanded the lead to 14 on two free throws by Robert Williams III with 2:37 left in the half and led 71-61 at halftime.

James lobbed a pass to Smart, who hit a 3-pointer to pull the Lakers within 75-67 in the third quarter, but Sharpe answered with a dunk as Portland scored 25 of the next 38 points.

Grant scored the last seven Blazers points during the surge to give his team a 100-80 lead with 4:02 remaining.

Portland led 107-90 entering the final quarter but the Lakers pulled within 115-104 on a 3-pointer by Kobe Bufkin with 7:07 left. The Blazers responded with a 15-2 flurry to put the Lakers away. Toumani Camara drained a 3-pointer, Sharpe scored five Portland points in a row and Love (seven assists) scored seven straight to make it 130-106 with 3:05 left.

Portland remained without top scorer Deni Avdija, who missed his third game because of a back injury. Avdija is averaging 26.1 ppg and is in line for a spot in next month’s All-Star Game.

The Lakers host Toronto on Sunday at 6:30 p.m.

JJ: “We don’t go into games thinking tonight’s gonna be rough. Our belief level, expectations, the standards, they don’t change.” pic.twitter.com/rfWFO50NJQ

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) January 18, 2026

LeBron James (20 PTS, 9 REB, 8 AST) speaks to the media following the 132-116 loss to the Portland Trailblazers. pic.twitter.com/De3nrmACVn

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) January 18, 2026

Drew Timme (21 PTS, 4 AST, 2 REB) on getting big minutes tonight:

“It’s great to see all the work you put in. That’s the beauty of the G-League. When or if I’m ever needed, I’m ready.” pic.twitter.com/yRcviCrkKo

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) January 18, 2026