On the second night of a back-to-back, the Los Angeles Lakers put up an impressive fight against the defending NBA champions. Even though the LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers ultimately came out on top, they had to earn a victory against a Lakers team that fought until the very end.
The Lakers got help from both their veterans and young players as Nick Young led all scorers with 32 points while Brandon Ingram nearly notched a triple-double with nine points, nine assists, and 10 rebounds.
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After the game, LeBron James seemed impressed with the Lakers noting the team’s talent and the style in which head coach Luke Walton has them playing via the Lakers Official Twitter Page:
LeBron James: “(The Lakers) shot the ball extremely well. They’ve got a lot of talent over there & Luke has got them playing the right way."
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 18, 2016
This was one of those losses in which both the team and the fans won’t be too disappointed. The Lakers, without starting point guard D’Angelo Russell, had a great opening quarter and withstood multiple Cavalier runs to keep the game close throughout.
The Lakers also shot 47.7 percent from the field and 43.2 percent from three-point range while totaling 30 assists on their 41 made baskets. In addition to Ingram’s near triple-double Julius Randle had 16 points and seven assists while Jordan Clarkson added 20 points and five rebounds.
After an impressive start the Lakers quickly came back to earth with an eight-game losing streak. After breaking that streak on Friday the Lakers followed it up with a second straight promising performance in Cleveland.
With three games still remaining on this road trip, the Lakers have a chance to salvage things. It has been obvious to anyone who has played the Lakers that the future is bright with this team. LeBron just got his first experience and it looks like he came away impressed.