LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Luka Doncic made a winning start to his Los Angeles Lakers career on Monday, returning from injury with 14 points for his new team in a 132-113 drubbing of the Utah Jazz.

Slovenian superstar Doncic — who was traded to the Lakers by the Dallas Mavericks earlier this month in one of the most jaw-dropping deals in National Basketball Association (NBA) history — was playing his first game since suffering a calf injury in December.

The 25-year-old saw his time on court limited to 24 minutes, with Lakers head coach J.J. Redick, saying beforehand the club would be cautious as they managed Doncic’s fitness.

“I heard a lot of noise when I was introduced — it was a special moment,” Doncic said afterwards of the reception by the Lakers home crowd.

“The way they received me, it was amazing to see.”

“I was a little bit nervous before the game but once I stepped onto the court it was fun. Just being out there again felt amazing.”

There was a fleeting scare in the first quarter when Doncic required treatment to his left calf before heading to the locker room early in the quarter.

But the five-time All-Star returned to the court before eventually leaving the game late in the third quarter with the Lakers in control leading, 93-69.

In his time on court Doncic showed plenty of glimpses of the class that the Lakers hope will lead the team into a new era.

He scored his first points as a Laker with a superb 26-foot three-pointer in the first quarter, and combined well throughout with LeBron James, who finished with 24 points.

Doncic drew one of the loudest roars of the night after unleashing a length-of-the-court pass to James for a score in the first half.

He later said he believes his understanding with the 40-year-old icon could cause problems for the rest of the league.

“He sees the game in a different way to a lot of people and his IQ is insane,” Doncic said. “To have two guys like that on the court is going to help the team.”

The Lakers improved to 32-19 with the victory and sit in fifth place in the Western Conference. Utah fell to 12-40 and are one place off the bottom of the table.

The Cleveland Cavaliers overcame a 44-point display from Anthony Edwards to maintain their grip on the Eastern Conference with a 128-107 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Wolves ace Edwards put on a scintillating individual performance with eight three-pointers from 13-of-28 shooting, but his effort was in vain as Cleveland romped to a wire-to-wire win.

The Cavaliers improved to 43-10 to remain 5.5 games clear of the second-placed Boston Celtics, who were comfortable 103-85 winners over the Miami Heat.

Evan Mobley led the Cavs’ scoring with 28 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and four blocks on a night when six Cleveland scorers cracked double figures. Donovan Mitchell had 23 points, with Darius Garland scoring 17.

In Miami, the reigning NBA champion Celtics fought back from an early 11-point deficit to outgun the Heat.

Jayson Tatum finished with 33 points to lead the Boston scoring. Boston improved to 38-16 with the victory.

In Milwaukee, Stephen Curry scored a season-high 38 points as the Golden State Warriors defeated the Bucks, 125-111.

Golden State star Curry made six three-pointers in his 38-point haul, with new recruit Jimmy Butler adding 20 points.

The Bucks’ Damian Lillard shot 12-of-20 and also finished with 38 points, following on from his 43 points in Sunday’s win over Philadelphia.