The Los Angeles Lakers handed the Miami Heat a 138-117 defeat, a 21-point rout that stood out as one of the most dominant performances of the still-young 2026-27 NBA season for either club.

The final score was confirmed through official league box scores tracked by CBS Sports' scoreboard and ESPN's league schedule for the night's full slate of games, in which the Lakers' margin of victory was among the largest of any matchup played.

The win was part of a busy night across the league that saw 15 games tip off, including the Oklahoma City Thunder's 117-112 win over Cleveland, a 135-134 overtime thriller between New Orleans and Memphis, and Sacramento's 115-100 win over Dallas.

An Early Measuring Stick

Early-season blowouts rarely settle much on their own, but for a Lakers team looking to reestablish itself near the top of a crowded Western Conference, a 21-point win over a Miami squad that reached the postseason last year is the kind of result that gets noticed in November box scores. The Heat, by contrast, will look to regroup quickly as they continue to find their rotation early in the season.

A 21-POINT NIGHT TO REMEMBER

Both teams will look ahead to the rest of a long schedule, with the real test of November still to come as teams settle into the identities that will define their seasons heading toward the new year.

What's Next

The Lakers and Heat each return to action within the week as part of the league's typically condensed early-season schedule, with standings across the conference still shifting night to night this early in the year.