This was the type of win that has eludedthe Lakersfor most of the season.
And just as importantly, it was against one of the NBA’s best teams.
The Lakers’ 110-97 victory over the Knicks on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena wasn’t only significant because of the stage — a nationally televised matchup on ABC between the most popular teams in the league’s biggest markets — but because it put a pause to the concerns whether the Lakers have what it takes to beat the league’s best.
And on Sunday afternoon, whileLeBron Jameswas in street clothes on the bench for the second consecutive game, they put together arguably their best performance of the season against a healthy Knicks team that won 16 of its previous 21 games.
The shotmaking and playmaking from their stars was present, withLuka Doncic(35 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals) and Austin Reaves (25 points, five assists, four rebounds) combining for 60 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists.
The role players contributed with energy and hustle plays, with Marcus Smart, Jaxson Hayes, Deandre Ayton and Jake LaRavia leading the way with impactful plays that don’t show up in the box score.
And the defense was as dialed in as it’s been all season, with the Lakers also benefiting from the Knicks’ poor 3-point shooting.
“We played hard, stuck to the game plan and competed,” Reaves said. “That’s what it came down to. I thought we played harder than them and we set the tone early and had a really good third quarter.”
The Lakers’ win over the Knicks put them at 5-12 on the season against teams with .600-or-better records.
They had lost the previous six and 12 of their last 13 matchups against those teams, with the lone win in that stretch being against the Nikola Jokic-less Nuggets on Jan. 20.
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
