The Lakers were the Lakers again — the version at the start of this season that didn’t make optimism seem like folly.

For two and a half quarters on Sunday night against Memphis, they completely shed the baggage of the last two weeks. The long miles, the stagnant offense, the physical injuries from losses to bigger, tougher teams – it’s all gone.

LeBron James was back and looking like the version of himself that starred at the Olympics this summer. The passes whizzed, his feet moved and his control was unquestionable.

This was the team that JJ Redick had in the first few weeks of the season, and the team that the Lakers have desperately tried to recapture in brutal fashion ever since.

And then Zach Edey chopped and pulled on Anthony Davis’ left shoulder, and everything felt like it could change.

Read more: Plaschke: The sinking Lakers franchise needs to jettison LeBron James and Anthony Davis

Davis went to the locker room, the Lakers’ offense stalled, their defense wasn’t as ferocious and their 20-point lead was more than cut in half.

A simple night suddenly became hard.

But instead of folding in the face of pressure, as they have done so often in the last ten games, the Lakers showed toughness. Davis returned in the fourth quarter. Austin Reaves, bloodied from elbow to mouth, was still fighting. Max Christie was still defending. James was still running across the square.

The Lakers defeated Memphis 116-110 in a game in which the Grizzlies never took the lead. They set the tone physically, they executed offensively, and Davis dominated, setting season highs with 40 points and 16 rebounds.

James had 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in his first game back after missing the last two. Reaves had 19 points and eight assists.

Jaren Jackson Jr. led Memphis with 25 points before exiting. Ja Morant scored 20 but needed 21 shots, with Christie playing one of the best defensive games of his career.

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter where James spent the last week. However, it matters where he wasn’t – with the Lakers. And when he came back, LeBron James looked like LeBron James again.

He scored his first points with a thunderous one-handed dunk. He immediately followed up with a trademark block from behind. And his next basket was an acrobatic tip-in that showcased his 22-year-old athleticism.

But the other changes were more subtle and the signs that James was spiritually refreshed were just as obvious.

He jumped off the bench in the first quarter to interact with his team and shout instructions. He sprinted across the floor to grab another highlight-reel slam, but was denied by Reaves, who patiently investigated and found a cutting Davis for a bucket.

“Good pass,” James said on his way back down the field, his cut energizing the defense, the kind of play that doesn’t translate into a box score.

Before the game, Redick said he and James had talked a week ago about the veteran taking time off from the team before James missed the Lakers’ win over Portland. The break was a chance for James to recover physically with his ailing left foot and for James to recover mentally after a quarter of the season.

“I played 15 (seasons) and was emotionally, mentally, physically drained and drained. I put everything I had into this game,” Redick said. “I had nothing left. For people like him and (Chris Paul), the Tom Bradys of the world, the Roger Federers of the world, it’s hard to imagine that level of sustained excellence lasting so long because of the toll it takes on just your body.

The Lakers will all receive another break and will not play again until Thursday in Sacramento.

Subscribe to our weekly Lakers newsletter.

This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.