Through 40 games, the Lakers have an identical record (19-21) to their mark after 40 games last season.

But dig beyond the surface similarities, and the context couldn’t be more different.

That 2022-23 group — not yet completely remade at the 2023 trade deadline — was on a five-game winning streak and had won six of seven games at the 40-game mark. LeBron James had missed nine games. Anthony Davis had missed 15. Russell Westbrook was still on the roster with an inevitable overhaul looming.

The 2023-24 squad is heading in the opposite direction, having lost six of eight games (with four of those losses by double-digits) and 12 of 17 since winning the In-Season Tournament on Dec. 9. James has missed just four games. Davis has missed two. It’s unclear if a significant trade would address deep-rooted issues. On top of everything, this West is better and deeper.

With James out due to a left ankle injury he suffered Thursday against the Phoenix Suns, the Lakers fell 124-115 to the surging Utah Jazz (21-20) at the Delta Center on Saturday night. The No. 11 Lakers are one game behind the No. 10 Houston Rockets and, more notably, two games back in the loss column.

Losing on the road to a Jazz team that’s won 11 of its last 13 games is excusable, especially without James. But the Lakers had a legitimate chance to win. They were ahead for two-and-a-half quarters and were still within striking distance midway through the fourth quarter. As Miami showed the Lakers without Jimmy Butler last week, good teams find a way to win without one of their stars on the road.

Davis, one of just four players who was on both Lakers teams at the 40-game mark (along with James, Austin Reaves and Max Christie), admits he doesn’t remember his exact mind state at this point last season. (At the time, Davis was out with a right foot injury.) Despite L.A.’s continued skid, he’s remaining optimistic while acknowledging the urgency and results the group still needs to conjure.

“We’re not in a bad spot. It could be worse,” Davis said. “We still have enough to win basketball games. But we just got to keep going — 40 games, 42 left. We got to make a push. These next five or six games at home are going to be a big stretch of games for us.”

The solutions to their problems remain unclear, even to those in the locker room. The only certainty is that the team needs to start winning sooner rather than later if they want to turn their season around.

“When our offense is working, it’s our defense that’s not,” D’Angelo Russell said. “When our defense is going, it’s our offense that’s not. So I don’t know. Y’all tell me. Nah, really, I don’t know. I can’t even give you nothing.”

James’ absence understandably had a considerable ripple effect on the game. The Lakers played faster without their 39-year-old superstar, getting into their sets quicker and spraying the ball around from side to side. They also were easier to contain with the Jazz keying in on Davis with aggressive double-teams while shading over to his side of the floor.

Davis posted just the second triple-double of his career — 15 points, 15 rebounds and a career-high 11 assists — and also had four blocks and one steal in 38 minutes. But the Jazz’s frontcourt length, perimeter speed and bold strategy bothered Davis, who shot just 5 of 21 from the floor and had a game-high six turnovers — half of the Lakers’ team total (12).

“Everyone did their job except me,” Davis said. “I didn’t do my job. Obviously, Bron was out and everyone has to step up and those guys did. Except myself. So this one’s on me.”

Head coach Darvin Ham came to Davis’ defense, as did Reaves.

“He’s hard on himself,” Ham said. “He had some shots that he took that normally go down, obviously, in his sweet spots. Had some unfortunate turnovers. And I just kept trying to tell him, all of us encouraging him to keep pushing through.

“But if you want to call 15-15-11 average, it just lets you know how special he is.”

Added Reaves: “I can already see the headlines, ‘AD sucks. AD can’t do this, can’t do that.’ Had a tough night shooting the ball. Other than that he was fantastic.”

Russell was the biggest beneficiary of James’ absence. He returned to the starting lineup for the first time in 10 games and scored a season-high 39 points to go along with eight assists. He shot 15 of 26 from the floor, making six of 11 3-point attempts as he shredded Utah’s perimeter defense.

“I mean, it’s just fun,” Russell said. “Just hoopin’, as simple as that.”

Russell and Reaves started alongside each other for the first time since Nov. 8, when Ham made the first of his multiple lineup changes. Reaves had 19 points before fouling out with just over five minutes left in the game.

“We got a lot of credibility in the short stint that we have together,” Russell said of the pairing. “So you put us out there, it works.”

Rui Hachimura, who missed the past five games with a left calf strain, returned and provided a much-needed spark off the bench with his size and shot creation. He scored 17 points in only 19 minutes due to a minute restriction and later said he’ll only need a few days to get back into proper game shape.

“I just told him to go out and play as hard as you can for as long as you can,” Ham said. “It was great to see him back out there and great to see him performing. Not hesitant, not apprehensive. Just being assertive and aggressive throughout.”

James was the only rotation player missing Saturday, but considering the Lakers’ injury luck this season, that didn’t last long. For the second straight game, Cam Reddish (left knee soreness) didn’t return for the second half of the game. Christie started in his place.

“We’ll get him looked at — he’s actually being looked at now — and have a definitive plan by Monday going forward with what’s going on with him,” Ham said of Reddish.

Two games after their free-throw disparity led to an epic rant from Toronto Raptors coach Darko Rajaković, the Lakers were on the opposite end of the ledger. The Jazz attempted 15 more free throws (39 for Utah compared to 24 for Los Angeles) and were 17 of 19 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.

“I was looking back at our replay guys that usually give me the signal whether or not we want to challenge,” Ham said. “And they were all telling me in unison not to challenge a bunch of those calls. So apparently we must have been fouling.”

The Lakers return home for six games in Los Angeles — one is a road matchup with the LA Clippers — before embarking on the six-game Grammy road trip at the end of the month. Their next two matchups are against the second-place Oklahoma City Thunder and seventh-place Dallas Mavericks; Los Angeles is a combined 1-3 against those two teams this season.

As the midway point of both January and the 2023-24 regular season nears, the Lakers must start figuring out the answers to their consistency problems and winning more games to warrant a notable roster investment from ownership and the front office. Otherwise, even the ideal blockbuster trade might not be enough to save their season with the type of hole they’re digging in the standings.