The Los Angeles Lakers looked to keep things rolling on Wednesday night when they traveled to take on the Cleveland Cavaliers.
LeBron James returning to Cleveland is always special, and this could potentially have been his last game there as a visiting player. With that being the case, there was extra intrigue added to the game but ultimately, the Lakers forgot to show up for the third quarter and were blown out, 129-99, as a result.
It wasn’t a great start for the Lakers as they were missing some easy looks with the Cavaliers scoring the first seven points. Deandre Ayton got the Lakers on the board with a putback, and then James and Luka Doncic both had great passes in transition to spark a 12-0 run to take the lead.
Unfortunately, Doncic rolled his ankle after taking a shot and appeared to be in some serious pain, going back to the locker room to get it looked at before eventually being cleared to return.
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers got back on track with an 8-0 run as it was a game of runs early. Gabe Vincent came off the bench for Doncic and made an immediate impact with two triples. The Lakers then locked in defensively and led 28-24 at the end of the first quarter.
Vincent stayed hot to begin the second with another 3-pointer and then Doncic hit one as well to extend the lead to double digits for the first time. That was short-lived, however, as Cleveland responded with yet another run to keep things close.
The Lakers were uncharacteristically missing a lot of free throws as Doncic, in particular, missed four in a row. That allowed the Cavaliers to take a slim 57-55 lead into the locker room after a strong close to the half.
After a quiet first half, Donovan Mitchell started to heat up to begin the third quarter to build a double-digit lead for the Cavs.
The Lakers look disinterested in the third quarter as they continued to give up offensive rebounds and committed costly turnovers, allowing Cleveland to get hot. Nothing went right for L.A. in one of their worst quarters of the season and they faced a 96-77 deficit going into the fourth.
Early in the fourth quarter, it was James’ turn to roll his ankle, although he was able to stay in the game. The game quickly got out of reach, however, as JJ Redick emptied the Lakers bench, resulting in a disappointing loss.
What’s next for the Lakers…
The Lakers’ eight-game road trip finishes with matchups against the Washington Wizards, New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets.
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