The Lakers and the Warriors meet for the second time this week after going head-to-head in Las Vegas earlier this week.
Tonight’s clash is in San Jose, but the Lakers will be without star man James after his stunning 15-point, 10-rebound, five-assist performance inside just one half of Thursday morning’s game.
The 33-year-old stunned in his 18 minutes on court, capped off by draining a 40-foot three-pointer at the half-time buzzer, as the Lakers won 123-113.
But it won’t be until the early hours of Boxing Day that the four-time MVP does battle with Steph Curry and co. again with the star rested tonight.
That’s with the Lakers’ 2018-19 season starting at the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday (3.30am UK time) – James having played in four of the Lakers’ six pre-season matches.
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Lonzo Ball also made his return from injury on Thursday and should start again here, with Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart and Alex Caruso all missing out through injury.
Coach Luke Walton said on James’ absence: ““Same goals as always: We don’t care who’s playing and who’s not, we’re gonna build an identity, and it’s gotta be who we are.
“No matter who’s on the court, we play a certain way.”
The Warriors, meanwhile, will only be without DeMarcus Cousins – whose debut is not expected to come for a few months as he continues his rehabilitation from an Achilles injury.
That’s with Draymond Green back from a knee injury, although he will be on a minutes restriction as he is eased back into action.
Yet Golden State coach Steve Kerr is excited to have the forward back on the floor.
He said: “It’ll be good to have Draymond back. With him out the last three games, it’s created some interesting combinations.
“Which has been good for us to get a look at guys, but some of the combinations have struggled a little bit, so Draymond has a way of tying things together out there.”
However, fellow All-Stars Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson are all likely to play as the Warriors look to lay down a marker ahead of their own season-opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday (3.30am UK).
How to watch Lakers vs Warriors LIVE
There will not be any live coverage of the Lakers vs Warriors on UK TV, but tip-off is at 3.30am on Saturday morning.
The match will be shown live on the Bet365 website. You just need to have a Bet365 account which has been funded or had a bet placed on it in the last 24 hours.
You can stream the match via this method on the Bet365 app or website on your Apple iPhone, iPad, Android or Windows phone.
For viewers in America, the clash can be watched on ESPN and Spectrum SportsNet.