The Los Angeles Lakers took the court for the 82nd and final time in the regular season on Sunday evening when they hosted the Utah Jazz.
There was a lot at stake for L.A. as a win, coupled with a Denver Nuggets loss to the San Antonio Spurs, would clinch the No. 3 seed and a first-round matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Any other outcome would keep the Lakers in fourth, setting up a series with the Houston Rockets.
Both games started at the same time, but the most important thing was the Lakers handling their own business, which they did with a 131-107 win over the Jazz. That meant the Lakers finish the season with a 53-29 record, which is their most wins since 2010.
The Lakers got off to a great start in this one as LeBron James had a pair of steals, allowing them to get out in transition. Deandre Ayton was also feasting down low with four easy buckets to take a 19-10 lead.
Rui Hachimura also got off to a hot start offensive with seven points, and the Lakers led 32-22 at the end of the first quarter.
The one player who got off to a slow start was Marcus Smart, but he began the second quarter by making a triple and then pointing up to the sky to give thanks after missing his first four shots.
James continued to do everything for the Lakers, but to their credit, the Jazz were playing hard and just hung around for most of the first half. That was until L.A. had a flurry from deep to end the second quarter, going into the locker room with a 62-45 lead.
JJ Redick said before the game that he would play some players limited minutes and that was indeed the case as LeBron and Kennard both didn’t play the second half. Bronny James started the third quarter in his dad’s absence and immediately went into attack mode with five quick points. In fact, Bronny had nine points in the third quarter alone
Neither team was playing much defense in the third quarter, essentially trading buckets, and the Lakers took a comfortable 95-74 lead into the fourth.
The Lakers took out the rest of their starters for the fourth quarter, but they still had no issues getting the win as they continued to extend the lead to put it out of reach.
What’s next for the Lakers…
The Lakers will now get some time off before opening up their first round series at home either next Saturday or Sunday.
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