The Los Angeles Lakers narrowly defeated the Charlotte Hornets 112-107. The Lakers started the game hot, taking a 23-point lead in the first half. But the Hornets were able to cut the lead down and turn it into a three-point game in the final seconds. But the Lakers held on to get another massive win to extend their record to 27-18.
Anthony Davis had a massive performance tonight, putting up 42 points (17-28 FG), 23 rebounds, two assists, and two blocks. He started the game hot with a 21-point first quarter, outscoring the entire Hornets side. LeBron James struggled from deep but still put up 22 points (9-17 FG), seven rebounds, and eight assists. Austin Reaves delivered 17 points (5-14 FG), five rebounds, six assists, and three steals.
As for the Charlotte Hornets, they were led by Miles Bridges, who had 26 points (10-23 FG), eight rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block. New arrival Josh Okogie came off the bench to put up 19 points (6-11 FG), two rebounds, two assists, and four steals. Josh Green came up with 15 points (4-6 FG), one rebound, one assist, and three steals.
The Lakers should have won this game quite comfortably. But they made tough work for themselves by surrendering what was a major lead. In the end, they still got things done, but it showed that the Lakers still struggle to defend, and definitely need some reinforcements ahead of the February 6th trade deadline.
With that in mind, here are three reasons the Lakers defeated the Hornets:
Hornets Lose LaMelo Ball To Injury
LaMelo Ball had played well in the first half, scoring seven points (2-5 FG), one assist, and one steal. But his game got cut short significantly, as he suffered an injury that meant he only played nine minutes before being taken out of the game entirely. The loss of LaMelo Ball, especially given how well he played in the few minutes he was on the court.
The Lakers completely got lucky with LaMelo’s injury, as it meant that the Hornets lost their best player. Even without LaMelo, the Hornets caused a lot of problems for the Lakers, almost turning the lead around. One has to question whether the Hornets would have turned things around if they had LaMelo Ball on the court.
For the season, Ball is averaging 28.2 points, 7.3 assists, 5.3 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game, shooting 41.9% from the field, 33.7% from beyond the arc, and 82.0% from the free-throw line. If he could have recreated anything close to this stat line tonight, we might have been talking about a Hornets win.
Anthony Davis Delivers Bombshell Outing
We already talked about it, but it cannot go understated just how well Anthony Davis played tonight. Davis put up a 40-20 game, which is one of the toughest things any big man can do in the NBA. It was the former All-Star’s chance to remind fans why he is considered one of the best players in the world.
Davis has been playing very well this season, averaging 26.3 points, 12.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.3 steals, and 2.2 blocks per game while shooting 52.7% from the field, 29.8% from the three-point line, and 78.8% from the free-throw line. Tonight was yet another notch for Davis this season.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been incredibly lucky to have Davis this season. Their 27-18 record would be dramatically different if Davis was unhealthy, or even worse, on another team. Perhaps they should reward Davis’ performance by securing a center like he has been asking the Los Angeles Lakers to do for so long.
Lakers Dominate The Inner Circle
The Los Angeles Lakers shot well from the field tonight, putting up 86 attempts and converting 44 of them, with 51.2% accuracy. Of these attempts, they went 33-58 from within the arc, going 56.9% inside the circle. This accuracy within the inner circle compensated for the Lakers’ terrible three-point shooting.
The Lakers shot 6-28 from the field, converting just 21.4% of their attempts from beyond the arc. Their weak three-point shooting tonight could have been a massive detriment to the Lakers, but their efficiency from the paint especially saved them as much as possible. Of course, most of these attempts came from Anthony Davis, who converted 17 of his 26 attempts.
Davis was responsible for a little under half of their attempts, and over half of their converted shots in the circle. This efficiency from inside the circle proved to be their saving grace tonight.
The Los Angeles Lakers, despite not playing at the highest level possible, will be happy about getting the big win. The Lakers have found it challenging to win games in succession, but they currently are on a four-game winning streak.
Well, now they face their toughest challenge to make it five wins in a row, as they have to face the Philadelphia 76ers. The Lakers, for as good as they have been, have shown their weakness when it comes to slipping on the proverbial banana skin. JJ Redick must prepare his team as well as possible to make sure that does not happen.
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