LeBron James slammed the Los Angeles Lakers, claiming they are not championship contenders after suffering a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic and reigning league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander both sat out for their respective teams through injury as the Thunder triumphed 119-110 on Monday.

James led the Lakers with 22 points, while Marcus Smart added 19, while Jalen Williams starred for Oklahoma City with a game-high 23.

The 41-year-old scored 14 of his points in the second half, and the Lakers led 99-98 with 7:24 minutes remaining, but Williams helped the Thunder close the game, getting 10 in the final five minutes.

And James was blunt when he was asked what separates the Lakers (32-19) from the NBA-leading Thunder (40-13).

"You want me to compare us to them? That's a championship team right there," James said.

"We're not.

"We can't sustain energy and effort for 48 minutes, and they can. That's why they won a championship."

Final pic.twitter.com/kKJfEfvBCJ

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 10, 2026

The defeat ended a three-game winning streak for the Lakers, who are fifth in the Western Conference.

Los Angeles struggled in defense once again, especially in the closing stages, and head coach JJ Redick admitted his team were not at their best throughout.

"I think when you play the best teams - and Oklahoma City is clearly - you know, you have to have a really high level of effort, and you have to have a really high level of execution," Redick said.

"It's got to be both, and I thought for the most part our effort was fantastic. In key stretches of the game, our execution wasn't great."