For the second consecutive game, the Los Angeles Lakers had an opportunity to take down the Oklahoma City Thunder on the road. But things went downhill following the ejection of Luka Doncic in the fourth quarter and the Lakers were outscored by 17 points in the final 7:40, ultimately losing by 16.
Doncic’s ejection was the source of a lot of conversation as the Lakers superstar picked up his second technical foul for yelling at a fan following a made basket and it seemed as if the referee felt Luka was yelling at him. Following the game, Doncic confirmed that his words were not directed at the official and he didn’t understand why he was ejected, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“Yeah. I mean, you could see it as it happened. But I’ve never gotten a fan ejected, never, but if he’s gonna talk, I’m gonna talk back like always. That had nothing to do with the refs, so I didn’t really understand.”
It was an unfortunate mistake and one that cost the Lakers dearly as the Thunder immediately pulled away with Luka gone. And for Doncic to have to watch that from the locker room bothered him as he felt he let his team down:
“I mean, it was tough. We were right there. I think we fought the whole game, we were down at halftime and came back in the third quarter. We were fighting, so it was tough to see that this kind of situation happened. And that’s on me too, so I feel like I let my team down.”
Doncic finished the night with 23 points and five assists, but it was the Lakers’ performance as a whole that was impressive. After a blowout victory on Sunday, many would have expected the Thunder to return the favor, but the Lakers fought back from a halftime deficit and, in the eyes of Doncic, showed that they really can hang with any team in the league:
“I think we showed that we can beat anybody when we lock in. Like I said, we fought back. It’s very hard to win here, the crowd is into it, they have a great team. I think it just showed what kind of team we are, and I think we’re a pretty good team.”
The final outcome was not ideal, but it was still a promising showing from the Lakers overall. The addition of Doncic has clearly raised the ceiling of this team and as long as he can stay on the court and no more questionable ejections occur, the Lakers are going to be a tough out for any team in the postseason.
Lakers coach JJ Redick unhappy with Luka Doncic’s ejection vs. Thunder
Luka Doncic wasn’t the only person unhappy with the ejection as Lakers head coach JJ Redick voiced his frustration after the game as well.
Redick said the loss to the Thunder didn’t get to finish the way everyone would’ve hoped thanks to “some decision making on some individuals parts.” Redick added that he hadn’t been told exactly why Luka had been ejected, only that he had said something to a fan.
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