Concern was high for the Lakers coming into tonight’s game against the Mavericks, but they showed out tonight to pull off a big win over Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and company. LeBron James and Anthony Davis both scored over 20 in the game and were dominant for the night, but it was D’Angelo Russell who stole the show, going off for 29 points on 71% shooting from three.
It was a stellar showing from Russell, who may finally be having a breakthrough after a particularly rough stretch of play. Of course, for the Lakers, it’s another sign that they still have some fight left in them. After falling as low as 12th in the standings, the team has stabilized a bit to get back to .500 on the season.
Meanwhile, for the Mavericks, Kyrie Irving scored just 12 points after suffering a health scare earlier in the game. Without his offense, the Mavericks were unable to keep up with the Lakers, and red-hot D’Angelo Russell in particular. Now, they have fallen to 7th in the West, tied with Sacramento in the standings.
Lakers Fans React To Statement Win
Overall, it’s been a pretty tough season for the Lakers and they still have a lot of ground to make up if they want to be a competitive team come April. Even so, they are showing some flashes of greatness that are impossible to ignore, and Lakers Nation was noticeably giddy after the buzzer.
LAKERS BLOWOUT WIN! 🗣️🗣️🗣️
D’Angelo: 29 PTS (5-7 3PM)
AD: 28 PTS | 12 REB | 9 AST
LeBron: 25 PTS | 8 REB | 7 AST
Reaves: 14 PTS (2-2 3PM) | 6 AST
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) January 18, 2024
It remains to be seen if the Lakers can sustain this level of play, but with LeBron James and Anthony Davis playing like this (and D’Angelo Russell shooting well from outside) this team is hard to beat and they can beat any opponent on any given night.
This version of the Lakers beating any team in the west pic.twitter.com/nK9C3eC3I1
— ✧.* (@HoodiiBron) January 18, 2024
The team that played tonight is much more reminiscent of the squad that closed the second half of last season and went on a run to the Western Conference Finals. While head coach Darvin Ham has been hesitant to use last season’s starters in this campaign, he’s putting more and more trust in the proven vets as newcomers like Cam Reddish fall out of the rotation.
https://twitter.com/JamesEdrick3/status/1747830330084425955
The best part about this win for the Lakers is that it came against a solid Western Conference team at full strength, which only further validates their place among the NBA elites.
Lakers beat the Thunder and blowing out the Mavs I can't complain pic.twitter.com/1764k8lABJ
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) January 18, 2024
Whether you love or hate the Lakers, it’s impossible to deny that they are dangerous when they’ve got it clicking. As bad as things have looked so far, there’s still a lot of season left and reinforcements could be on the way.
What’s Next For The Lakers?
With the win secured tonight, the Lakers can rest easy until Friday for their rematch against the Brooklyn Nets. It’ll be another home game for them and another chance to prove themselves against a team that is currently sliding in the standings. But beyond just this week, the Lakers could have big plans to shake things up.
As the trade deadline approaches, names like Zach LaVine, Dejounte Murray, and Alex Caruso have emerged and the Lakers could take a shot at any one of them. But until the right opportunity opens up, there’s nothing else for them to do but wait and try their hardest to stay competitive. If they keep winning like they did tonight, it might be proof they don’t need to do anything at all…
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