EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — It’s hard to win a game without Anthony Davis. It’s that much harder if Rui Hachimura sits out, too.

LeBron James tried to carry the injury-depleted Lakers but only got so far in a 131-114 loss Wednesday to the Memphis Grizzlies.

It capped a dud of a road trip in which the Lakers went 1-4, wiping out a solid 3-0 start to the season.

The Lakers were in trouble long before tipoff in Memphis. Davis was sidelined because of a bruised left heel and Hachimura sat out because of an undisclosed illness, costing the Lakers a combined 46.2 points and 18 rebounds.

Then came the actual game.

James finished with 39 points, matching his age, but unfortunately for the Lakers, he played better than the rest of the starters combined.

James made six three-pointers while the other starters combined for only five. James made 15 shots overall while the other four starters totaled 16.

“I think LeBron was fantastic tonight. Almost 40 years old and he played the hardest on our team,” Lakers Coach JJ Redick said. “Says a lot about him.”

The Lakers’ guards had trouble shooting all night. D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves each made only two of nine three-point attempts while reserve Gabe Vincent was one for six from deep.

Russell played only 22 minutes, including a mere six in the second half. When asked why, Redick mentioned Russell falling into bad habits.

“Level of compete, attention to detail. Some of the things we’re talked with him about for a couple of weeks,” Redick said. “It wasn’t like a punishment. I just felt like for us to have a chance to win this game. That was the route we wanted to take.”

The Lakers were definitely short-handed, but the Grizzlies (5-4) could have claimed an injury excuse too. They played without Desmond Bane and Marcus Smart, two important backcourt pieces, and then All-Star Ja Morant left the game late in the third quarter after taking a hard fall.

Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr. and rookie second-round draft pick Jaylen Wells each scored 20 points for Memphis.

Despite an almost empty road trip that featured three double-digit losses, James didn’t sound frustrated.

“We’re still executing, but it doesn’t look that way when the shots aren’t going in,” James said. “The execution offensively isn’t the problem. We’ve got to compete and we’ve got to defend.”

The Lakers return home Friday to play Philadelphia, starting a three-game home stand.