LOS ANGELES — Little has been done for the Lakers to diffuse claims over their efforts against NBA finals contenders. Or even to quell the noise; it’s been less than a month since Oklahoma City and San Antonio ran amok over the Lakers on their home court.
So, beating the New York Knicks 110-97 in n a Sunday matinee at Crypto.com Arena, handling the third-place team in the Eastern Conference with championship aspirations, provided the Lakers with what coach JJ Redick calls a “reference point.” Or in this case, a signal that they can hold their own even when LeBron James isn’t available like he was Sunday.
Luka Doncic (35 points on 11-of-25 shooting) and Austin Reaves (25 points on 8-of-16 shooting) led the way for the Lakers (39-25), using a game-winning third-quarter scoring run – outscoring the Knicks 34-20 – to head into the fourth quarter up by 19 points.
Doncic’s circus shot, one of his five buckets in the third quarter, with 8:55 on the clock, wholly described the Lakers’ performance Sunday. The Slovenian star faked a shot from the left wing, forcing Knicks forward OG Anunoby into a shot-blocking position, before firing off a fadeaway 3-pointer while falling into the courtside crowd as the shot clock hit zero. Doncic’s shot, as with what feels like a trend of the MVP candidate making seemingly impossible attempts, swirled down the net. The Lakers then led 65-56, holding the Knicks to just 13 points for the rest of the quarter.
The Knicks (41-24) made a storming fourth-quarter comeback, cutting the lead to 10 after forward Karl-Anthony Towns sunk a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 2:25 remaining, but it was too little, too late as the Lakers staved off the run when guard/forward Luke Kennard drilled a 3 of his own to push the lead back to 13 points.
Deandre Ayton started the game with some of his best energy in recent weeks. He stuffed Knicks forward Karl-Anthony Towns and guard Josh Hart at the rim, hustled for an offensive rebound, which became a second-chance 3 for Reaves and slammed home an alley-oop dunk off an assist from Doncic to force Mike Brown into a timeout with the Lakers up 11-4.
As Ayton walked to the bench, at the five-minute mark in the first quarter, Redick rewarded his starting big man – who hadn’t played since he exited the first quarter of Thursday’s game in Denver with left knee soreness – with loud, directed claps, while guard Marcus Smart stood to greet his locker mate with appreciation.
“I think the way we’ve kind of coached him has been very consistent,” Redick said of Ayton pregame, preaching adaptability and hoping to help his center get in a rhythm as the season enters the home stretch. “And so ultimately, the player has to be consistent. And that’s not to say, that’s not knock on DA, that’s just the NBA.”
By the end of the first quarter, the waves of energy – originally built off Ayton’s early play – led the Lakers to a 31-23 advantage.
Reaves, who Redick said Sunday morning he wanted to play aggressively and drive into the paint each time he touched the ball, did so throughout the second quarter.
The 27-year-old guard converted a running floater along the baseline to place the Lakers ahead 35-29, drove to the rim for a layup to extend the lead to 11 points and helped halt a Knicks 9-2 run before halftime with a four-foot jumper from inside the paint to take a 54-49 lead.
During the second quarter, the Lakers found energy across a three-minute stretch with Reaves on the floor alongside bench role players Maxi Kleber, Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura and Marcus Smart, holding the Knicks to 1 for 5 from the field, tallying three forced turnovers, including a steal from Kleber and a block from Reaves. Even Vanderbilt, who hadn’t made a 3-pointer in two weeks, drilled a corner look after nifty ball movement found him alone beyond the arc.
Towns led the Knicks with 25 points, while guard Jalen Brunson helped pace the Knicks with 24 points himself in defeat. The Lakers held the Knicks to 23.5% from 3-point range.
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