LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James scored 23 of his 31 points in a dominant second half, and Dwight Howard added season highs of 21 points and 15 rebounds in the Los Angeles Lakers’ ninth consecutive victory, 128-99 over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night.
Rajon Rondo and Kyle Kuzma led the Lakers to a 125-110 walloping of the Thunder that showed this team might have a bit more depth and resiliency than previously thought.
Without their two stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers still showed up
Lakers center Anthony Davis left the team’s game against the New York Knicks in the third quarter after landing hard on his back following a collision around the rim with Knicks forward Julius Randle. He missed the rest of the game with a sacral contusion/bruised tailbone, according to the team.
The Lakers looked like they might blow their lead in the third quarter, but managed to overcome the absence of Anthony Davis and hold on to win their season series with the Mavericks, 3-1. With a small lineup featuring Jared Dudley at center and LeBron James at the four, the Lakers rallied, holding off the Mavericks, increasing the lead back to 20 and ultimately leaving Dallas with a 129-114 win.
The Los Angeles Lakers have hit the ground running in the new year.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been spectacular this season thanks to their two superstars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Unfortunately, it appears they will be without Davis for at least the next two games after he suffered a nasty fall during the Lakers' 117-87 win over the New York Knicks on Tuesday night.
Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving has hopes of being back on the court before 2020 gets too far along.
Irving has played in just 11 games this season, averaging 28.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 7.2 assists. In the latest NBA All-Star Voting returns, Irving ranks second in the Eastern Conference among guards with 1,351,997 votes. He saw nothing wrong with him being so high in the voting tallies despite playing in so few games.
"I put a lot of work in this league to be up there whether I'm playing or not," Irving said. "If it's an All-Star Game, then I would vote for myself as well."
Irving has been out of the lineup for nearly two months because of a right shoulder injury. However, he told reporters Thursday he expects to be re-evaluated next week. Just being cleared to play is a big step to Irving.
NBA trade rumors season is officially in full swing, as leaks about what the Los Angeles Lakers want to do just keep coming. However, while most of the news so far has been about what they will or won’t do with Kyle Kuzma, the latest update about who L.A. might be interested in concerns another player: Davis Bertans.
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young made a donation Wednesday when it was announced he paid off $1 million of medical debt belonging to the most vulnerable residents in Atlanta.
The Lakers are the first team to block 20 shots since the Toronto Raptors did it Nov. 7, 2001. It was the second-best total in Lakers history; they had 21 blocks against Denver in April 1982.Davis and McGee are just the third pair of teammates in NBA history with at least six blocks each, a feat previously accomplished by Dirk Nowitzki and Erik Dampier for Dallas on Jan. 29, 2005.