After grabbing Ls in Texas, the team returned to Los Angeles to host the Washington Wizards this Friday night. Former Lakers Kyle Kuzma (23 pts, 7 reb) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope were back on their championship soil and were welcomed by former teammates before they were defeated 122-109.
LeBron James (50 pts, 7 reb, 6 ast ) and the Lakers arsenal of young guns got after it tonight — take note of the 50 piece from the King, his second straight at home, 14th in his career.
Russell Westbrook (9 ast) also climbed to No. 11 on the NBA’s All-Time Assist List.
The game stayed close into the third quarter. The Lakers were stagnant on defense early on and awarded Washington a handful of second-shot chances. On the other end, the Wizards protected the rim pretty effectively and closed down Los Angeles in the paint — that was until quarter three.
“We got more detailed when attacking the Wizards,” Bron said postgame. LBJ was especially detail-oriented. He was scoring from all over the floor, 18-for-25 from the field which included ferocious dunks off the drive and his poetic fadeaway. And in his 36 minutes and nine attempts, King James only missed three triples. His mom, Gloria James, was in the house. “She’s my biggest supporter, my biggest inspiration, and my biggest love,” LeBron said after the game. The Lake Show was for her.
Whatever wave No. 6 was riding, his younger teammates hopped on too. Malik Monk (21 pts, 4 ast), Talen Horton-Tucker (15 pts, 5 reb,), and Austin Reaves (12 pts, 5 reb) combined for 48 coming out of the contest. Monk missed only two triples all night. Talen created space with his handles to knock down the shot. And he also threw it down a time or two... or three. And Reaves, well Reaves has vision. Whether he’s dishing dimes or cutting to receive them, he has a deep understanding of defensive coverages and how to avoid them.
It’s always good to start the weekend off with a win. After the game, LeBron spoke to the fan sentiment throughout the season expressing how “this is Laker Faithful. They know when you’re playing bad basketball and they know when you’re playing good basketball. They have the right to have any response they want.”
The Lakers have another shot this weekend to give fans what they want when they travel to Phoenix to face the Suns on Sunday.