The Los Angeles Lakers have had their ups and downs since the 2026 NBA trade deadline. But recent developments have given the Lakers some hope down the stretch.
JJ Redick Talks Shooting, Athletic Youngster, And Lakers Injury Updates
LA (39-25) continues its current five-game homestand tomorrow night against the Minnesota Timberwolves, coming off an impressive 110-97 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday. The Lakers never trailed in the game, leading by as many as 23 points as Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves continued to thrive without Lebron James.
Doncic poured in 35 points, marking his 33rd game of reaching the 30-point mark, and grabbed eight rebounds, while Reaves tallied 25. It was Reaves’ third 20-point game in his last 15 contests.
“I think the messaging to him has just been to be himself,” coach JJ Redick said after the victory over the Knicks. “And I think sometimes when you miss time, and circumstances are going on with the team, that you can kind of be a little passive. … We want him to be aggressive. Every time he gets the ball, we want him to be aggressive and have a mentality to touch the paint.”
More importantly, the Lakers turned in one of their better defensive performances. The 97 points the Knicks scored are the third fewest allowed by the Lakers,s as they were great from beyond the arc on both ends of the court. The Lakers drained 15 threes, tying for the fifth most on the season, and held the Knicks to just eight triples, which is their fifth fewest of the campaign, on 23.5% from the 3-point line.
Doncic led the Lakers’ three-point barrage, though he was just 5 of 16 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Rui Hachimura (3 of 8), Reaves (3 of 4), and Luke Kennard (3 of 7) were a combined 9 of 19 from deep.
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