Since Luka Dončić joined the Los Angeles Lakers lineup on Thursday, they may have faced their most difficult test to yet. They succeeded.
The Lakers defeated the New York Knicks, who are in third place in the Eastern Conference, 40-21, after trailing by double digits in the fourth quarter and forcing overtime. They won 113-109. They had won eight times in a row.
LeBron James added 31 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists, while Dončić led the way with 32 points on 9 of 23 shooting, 12 assists, seven rebounds, and four steals. Since the Dončić move, they are now 12-2.
Unfortunately, Jalen Brunson rolled his ankle while driving to the basket with one minute remaining, deflating the overtime period. Additional replay revealed that his foot struck Austin Reaves’ foot at a very unsightly angle, resulting in a foul call.
After shooting his free throws to tie the game, despite his obvious anguish on the floor, Brunson went for the locker room. Despite not coming back, he finished with 10 assists and 39 points.
The fourth quarter’s last few minutes were a classic in and of itself. After falling behind for the whole third quarter and much of the fourth, the Lakers rallied with a 10-1 run and carried on trading blows from that point on.
LeBron James’ assist and a failed charge call by the officials set up Gabe Vincent’s 3-pointer, which gave the Lakers their first lead since the beginning of the second quarter.
The Knicks answered. With 46 seconds remaining, a Jalen Brunson and-1 knotted the score, and both teams’ defensive stops forced overtime. The Knicks had a fantastic chance to win it at the end, but the Lakers’ excellent defense made Brunson pass the ball to Josh Hart, who was unable to get a game-winning basket off before the clock struck out.
The Lakers’ fresh look demonstrated that they were serious if the game was a stress test. With 21 games remaining in the regular season, the victory raised their record to 40-21, good for second place in the West.
