There’s an argument to be made that the Los Angeles Lakers have been the best team in the NBA since the trade deadline as they’ve reeled off win after win against playoff-caliber teams.
Despite the Lakers integrating several new pieces on the roster and not having much depth at the center position, they’ve managed to go up big against their opponents and win behind a more efficient offense and stingy defense.
The Lakers took on the L.A. Clippers for the second straight game on Sunday to wrap up their regular season series, with the former beating the latter just a couple of days beforehand. It’s incredibly difficult to beat the same team twice in a row during the regular season, and the Lakers had their work cut out for them as Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and Jordan Goodwin were all ruled out.
However, the Lakers managed to overcome the injuries and a late Clippers surge to hold on for a 108-102 victory.
Luka Doncic has largely struggled shooting the basketball since being traded to Los Angeles, but he resembled his old self against the Clippers. There’s no love lost between Doncic and the Clippers due to previous playoff matchups, and it looked like the star guard took extra pleasure in scoring against them.
Doncic had been missing shots he has become known for making, but against the Clippers he finally started to see them go down. The Clippers had no answer for Doncic who either picked on Ivica Zubac in isolation or overpowered anyone else who tried to guard him.
Doncic had the efficient shooting night that he had been due for, scoring 29 points on 9-of-17 shooting including 5-of-12 from beyond the arc. He also had nine assists, six rebounds and two steals.
Since his trade to the Charlotte Hornets got rescinded, Dalton Knecht had been struggling to recapture his rhythm on the floor. However, he finally broke out of his own shooting slump as he took advantage of the Clippers playing off of him defensively.
Knecht did most of his damage from the 3-point line, hitting five of his eight attempts en route to 19 points.
LeBron James was quieter in the finale against the Clippers, opting to let Doncic handle the offensive load. However, James was still important for the win as he had 17 points, nine assists, five rebounds, two steals and one big block in the final minute.
James is also one point away from becoming the first player in NBA history to record 50,000 points between the regular season and playoffs.
What’s next for the Lakers
The Lakers get an easier matchup on Tuesday against the New Orleans Pelicans before a marquee game against the New York Knicks on Thursday.
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