LOS ANGELES — Surely the Lakers were headed for another loss.

No LeBron James because of COVID-19 health protocols. Seemingly no passion en route to a 14-point deficit against the Sacramento Kings.

Then a funny thing happened Tuesday. Maybe even hilarious to Lakers fans, not so much for Kings followers.

The Lakers crushed Sacramento in the second half and tucked away a 117-92 win, their largest margin of victory in a season filled with far too few.

Russell Westbrook rebounded from a quiet first half, Malik Monk couldn’t be stopped from three-point range and Anthony Davis was solid throughout as the Lakers improved to 12-11.

The Lakers were seemingly backed into a corner a few hours before tip-off.

James could miss at least 10 days because of NBA guidelines regarding COVID-19. The Lakers declined to specify the extent of his situation, though Davis extrapolated on it after the game.

“I talked to him today. I checked on him,” Davis said. “COVID is a scary thing, especially with all the new variants coming out. … It’s a scary situation.”

“He said he’s good. We want to make sure he gets back. He’s bigger than [just] basketball. He has a family.”

The only semi-fortunate part for the Lakers and James is a break in their schedule after a busy November that included 16 games.

The Lakers play only three times over the next nine days, giving them time to rest, practice a couple of times or merely mark time until James comes back. (The games, by the way, are against the Clippers, Boston and Memphis — three teams straddling the .500 mark.)

The Lakers also played Tuesday without starting guard Avery Bradley, who was sidelined because of a sprained right thumb.

They were certainly careening toward another loss. Then the second half began. The Lakers won it by the teeny tiny margin of 67-33.

Turns out they had a little talk in the locker room.

“Halftime, we had a conversation about the team we wanted to be. We had to buckle down on defense,” Davis said. “That’s the way we’ve got to start though.”

The Lakers tried a new approach in the third quarter by inserting Dwight Howard into the starting lineup instead of DeAndre Jordan.

It was humorous because Lakers Coach Frank Vogel told Howard he probably wouldn’t get into the game at all, Howard said.

“I was kinda down. I was expecting not to play,” Howard said.

He definitely played. And he excelled, finishing with 12 points and 13 rebounds in 35 minutes, a whopping total for the soon-to-be 36-year-old. He set screens and protected the rim, the “little things,” Davis said.

“He came in and changed the game,” Davis added.

Davis and Westbrook were a big part of the Lakers’ massive run, not to mention multiple three-pointers by Monk as the Lakers outscored Sacramento in the third quarter, 37-15.

Davis scored 25 points on the night while Westbrook added 23.

Westbrook had an ineffective first half with only eight points, two assists, a rebound and four turnovers.

“He flipped the script. He turned it around,” Vogel said.

So did the Lakers, in many ways.