LOS ANGELES — With just 28 games left to play coming out of the All-Star break, the Lakers are entering the final phase of the season.
That means every game becomes increasingly important as teams jockey for playoff positioning and attempt to set themselves up for postseason success.
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In the Lakers’ first game back from the All-Star break, they faced a tough opponent, taking on the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard. They passed the test, beating their rival 125-122.
While the game was far from easy, the Lakers had everyone available to take on the challenge. LA had a clean injury report, allowing them to play their entire rotation, a rarity for the purple and gold this season.
Lakers head coach JJ Redick took this opportunity to begin the game with a new starting lineup featuring LeBron James, Austin Reaves, Luka Dončić, Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart.
The result? The Lakers’ offense came out blazing, scoring 41 points, knocking down eight 3-pointers and missing just two shots in the opening quarter.
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“I think in the first quarter, we were playing good defense, and we were playing with a lot of pace,” Luka said postgame. “We were able to create some different looks, and I think that is how we should play.”
Despite the good start, challenges came LA’s way. Kawhi Leonard was incredible, scoring 31 points. And the Clippers had a 17-1 run in the third quarter that turned the Lakers’ 14-point advantage into a one-point deficit.
With the talent in the Western Conference, games like these are commonplace. How teams respond to this type of adversity is what separates the good teams from the bad ones.
On Friday night, the Lakers demonstrated they are the former.
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Luka and LeBron were generating looks for their teammates. Both players had 11 assists. In the fourth, Smart stepped up, and the defensive specialist added some scoring to his performance.
Midway through the fourth Smart scored five straight points to even the game up. Not only were these crucial baskets down the stretch of a close gcontest, but it was the first time Smart had shot the ball all night long.
With under two minutes to go, LA led by just three points and the game could’ve gone either way.
While LA’s offense was humming and their stars were played well, it was a charge that secured the result.
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With under two minutes to play and the Clippers down by three, Bennedict Mathurin was pushing the ball up the court and appeared destined to make it a one-point game.
Reaves did what he always does which is whatever it takes to win. He stood in Mathurin’s way and absorbed the contact as he got steamrolled in the paint. The foul was called, which not only gave the Lakers possession, but took Mathurin out of the game.
“That play right there changed the whole momentum,” Ayton said. “That just got everybody fired up and even more locked in down the stretch.”
The win wasn’t easy and it defintely wasn’t pretty. In fact, the Lakers almost gave up the game with a late turnover that gave Nic Batum a chance of tying it with a last-second three. But it rimmed out and the Lakers won.
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In the end the win-loss column cares not about context and with the Lakers needing to increase their win total as high as possible with what’s left in the season, earning the victory is all that matters.
“Obviously, want to go game by game, but it was important to start like this,” Luka said.
With the win in hand, a new starting lineup revealed and some impressive performances by the Lakers’ most important players, the time it’s now or never for LA to show the NBA just how good they can be.
If Friday night was any indicator, this team’s ceiling has yet to be reached.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.
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