To continue their perfect record in the first-ever NBA In-Season Tournament, the Los Angeles Lakers traveled to face the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.
Even though it was the third game in four nights for the Lakers, LeBron James and Anthony Davis both played despite coming off Wednesday night’s loss. The outcome was a 107-95 Lakers victory over the Trail Blazers, who were severely outmanned. With this victory, the Lakers moved one game closer to clinching Group A of the Western Conference. On Tuesday night, the Los Angeles Clippers will play host to the Utah Jazz. If the Clippers win, they will go to the next round.
As a result of their performance, the Lakers’ plus-30 point differential—the tiebreaker in group play—went up to plus-42, the greatest in the NBA entering the night.
D’Angelo Russell and LeBron James both got off to rare hot starts for the Lakers, as they each hit three-pointers. After that, Taurean Prince was fouled while trying to make a 3-pointer, but he converted every one of them to put the Lakers up 16-6.
Starting from that point on, LeBron shifted into attack mode, scoring several easy baskets inside and even stealing the ball and launching himself into a thundering slam while passing the ball to Russell.
At the conclusion of the first quarter, the Los Angeles Lakers led 30-23 due to some careless play on the part of the team. Austin Reaves scored the game-winning layup to put the first quarter out of reach.
Early in the second quarter, Jerami Grant—who often has strong performances against the Lakers—got the ball rolling with four consecutive baskets. Christian Wood answered with six consecutive points of his own, restoring a double-digit advantage.
While defending the paint in the first half, Davis blocked shots at will. Towards the latter of the half, he also began to find his attacking stride, scoring easily off of assists from Russell and Prince. The Lakers’ lead was trimmed to 60-50 as Sharpe finished the half with four consecutive points.
Once again, the Lakers started the third quarter poorly, making some careless mistakes and failing to attack the rim. It was suddenly a three-point game when Grant struck twice from downtown again.
After an alley-oop from Davis to James, Russell drained another 3-pointer, and the Lakers responded with five consecutive points. Although it temporarily slowed them down, the Trail Blazers persisted in attacking the offensive boards in an effort to maintain a competitive game.
The Lakers finally took an 82-75 lead into the fourth quarter, thanks in large part to James’s two huge bombs, which extended his impressive night.
The Lakers, sparked by LeBron, went on a 7-0 run to start the fourth quarter, regaining control of the game and increasing their advantage to 14. Cam Reddish put the game out of reach with a layup and a steal, and James then connected with Rui Hachimura for five consecutive points.