Lakers fall below .500 in LeBron James’ return from injury

BOSTON — LeBron James’ return from an extended absence couldn’t cure the inconsistent play that has plagued his team on both ends and was on full display in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 130-108 loss to the Boston Celtics on Friday.

The defeat dropped L.A. — one of the oddsmakers’ favorites to win the championship — to 8-9 with more than a fifth of the season in the books.

“It’s never, ‘We got 65 games left,'” James said when asked if he can take the long view considering the Lakers’ early injuries and how much of the 82-game regular-season slate remains. “We damn sure need to play better, no matter who is in the lineup. We have our system and we need to obviously fasttrack it and get better with it so we can play, no matter who is out on the floor, we can play at a high level. … There’s no level of panic. But there should be some sense of urgency anytime we take the floor.”

James played for the first time in 2½ weeks because of an abdomen strain and showed signs of his old self, registering 23 points on 10-for-16 shooting, six rebounds, two assists and two steals, but only three of his shot attempts came in the paint – which could be seen as a sign of the caution the 19-year veteran played with, dealing with his third significant injury in the past four seasons.

“Physically I felt OK and good enough to know that I can trust my body and get out and play tonight,” James said. “So, I’m more looking forward to seeing how I’m feeling tomorrow when I wake up. That is the telltale sign if I’m moving in the right direction with my injury.”

Who knows what direction the Lakers are headed, however.

Boston outrebounded L.A. 51-33 despite starting center Robert Williams III (averaging a team-best 9.2 rebounds per game) out of the lineup.

“I mean … rebound,” said Russell Westbrook. “Ain’t too much you can do about it. Just go get the ball. … simple as that.”

And the Lakers, who led by as many as 14 in the first half, saw their third-quarter woes continue, with the Celtics…