The Los Angeles Lakers have been on a roll lately since the addition of Luka Doncic to the roster. Since his arrival, the Lakers have a record of 12-2. They moved from fourth to second place in the Western Conference during this run. The Lakers were on an eight-game winning streak heading into TD Garden in Boston to battle the Celtics on Saturday. The chemistry between Doncic and Lakers Forward LeBron James has been a dream. On Thursday night, the Lakers played the New York Knicks at home and won in overtime 113-109. Doncic (31) and James(32) would combine for 63 points, and both had a double-double.
The Los Angeles Lakers defense has stepped up even when NBA experts predicted the Lakers defense wouldn’t be as good with the departure of Anthony Davis. Since the Doncic trade shocked the world, the Lakers have moved to eighth in defense. Players like Jarred Vanderbilt and Dorian Finney-Smith have been the driving force in defensive energy. Could the Lakers disrupt the Boston Celtics into a loss? The Celtics were on a three-game win streak. The last time the Lakers and Celtics met on January 23 in L.A., the Los Angeles Lakers won 117-96.
Classic NBA Rivalry Battle
The Los Angeles Lakers jumped out to a 12-4 lead in the first quarter against the Boston Celtics, with Doncic playing his typical maestro role. Both teams would be bombs away from the triple-point line with 20 attempts. The Lakers shot 5-of-11 from three-point land. The Celtics went 6-of-9 from the land of three. Doncic went 50% from the three-point line. James finished the first quarter 0-of-2 from deep but finished with 6 points. After the dust settled, both teams were locked at 33 points at the end of the first quarter.
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Celtics went back and forth in the second quarter, with eight lead changes. LA shot 47% from the field by the end of the first half. James had 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists at the half. Doncic ended the first half with 11 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists. The Celtics led at halftime. Celtics Forward Jayson Tatum scored a dunk in the closing seconds of the first half. Tatum finished the half with 22 points and the Boston Celtics led 58-54 at the break.
Celtics Too Much For Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics shot 47% from the field during the first half and 40% from the three-point line. It would seem both teams were evenly matched going into the second half. Tatum and the Boston Celtics turned up the heat in the third quarter, going on an 8-0 run in the first two minutes of the quarter. Doncic and James scored 13 points combined in the third quarter. The Lakers couldn’t stop the punches and, by the end of the third quarter, found themselves down by 20 as the Celtics outscored the Lakers 29-13 in the quarter. The Lakers turned the ball over 10 times in the quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Los Angeles Lakers still couldn’t control the ball, turning it over 11 times. Then, James exited the game with a left groin strain and did not return. James finished with 22 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assists. Doncic didn’t look 100% with some back tightness but finished the game. Los Angeles would cut the lead to four during the fourth quarter, but the Celtics would take advantage of a Jamesless Lakers. The Celtics beat the Los Angeles Lakers 111-101. The Celtics outscored the Lakers 34-24 in the fourth.
Doncic finished the game with 32 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists. The Lakers ended the game shooting 44.8% from the field and 35% from the three-point line. James was one assist away from a triple-double before leaving the game. After the game, James was asked about his injury and had this to say, according to ESPN, “not much concern.” James looks to handle the groin issue day to day.
Doncic had this to say about James exiting the game during an interview after the game, saying, according to ESPN reporter Dave McMenamin, “Obviously, to get injured at this time, those [groin] injuries are — I don’t want to say the worst, but they are tough to deal with,” Doncic said. “So just take his time. And we got to have as a team a next-man-up mentality.”
Final Thoughts
This game was another test for the Los Angeles Lakers to see how ready they are to compete in the fast-approaching NBA Playoffs. The Lakers have been winning games against top teams recently. If they had won against the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics, confidence would have been through the roof,
If James had stayed in the game, would the outcome have been different? The Lakers closed the Celtic lead down to four twice in the fourth quarter but didn’t have enough firepower to finish the job. The next game for the Lakers will be against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Monday. James was ruled out.
