After an impressive 2-1 showing in the California Classic, the Los Angeles Lakers headed to the desert to kick off Las Vegas Summer League action on Thursday night.
Their Las Vegas opener was a big one as they were matched up with top overall pick Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks in front of a sold out crowd at Thomas & Mack Center. Ultimately, the Mavericks came out on top, 87-85, in what was an entertaining game.
Bronny James got the Lakers off to a quick start with the first five points of the game, and then Dalton Knecht hit a triple to give them the early lead.
It did not take long for Flagg to get going, however, with six straight points of his own to give the Mavericks their first lead. After an entertaining first quarter, the Lakers faced a slim 19-17 deficit.
Cole Swider and DJ Steward have impressed to start the summer and that continued early in the second with back-to-back triples. The Lakers regained the lead on a bucket down low by Trey Jemison.
L.A.’s defense was doing a nice job making things tough on Flagg, and that included a couple of strong possessions from James. After Steward beat the buzzer with a midrange jumper, the Lakers took a 47-43 lead into the halftime locker room.
After a quiet first half, Knecht had back-to-back buckets to start the third quarter. He and Swider then each hit triples to stretch the lead to double digits for the first time.
That was short-lived, however, as Dallas responded with an 18-2 run to regain the lead and take a 68-62 advantage into the fourth quarter.
While Flagg continued to struggle offensively, his teammates had his back to maintain their lead despite a crafty finish from Steward.
The Lakers kept fighting though, to their credit, eventually taking the lead after a pair of 3s by Swider.
After a turnover by L.A., Ryan Nembhard buried a triple in transition to regain the lead for the Mavericks 87-85 going into the final minute.
Bazley then grabbed a big offensive rebound for the Lakers after a timeout and earned a trip to the free throw line, but he wound up missing both.
After an air-ball by Flagg, the Lakers got one final look at the buzzer, but Bronny missed a triple as time expired.
What’s next for the Lakers…
The Lakers will be back in Las Vegas Summer League action on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. PT when they take on the New Orleans Pelicans.
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