Luka Doncic has a triple-double, but LeBron-less Lakers lose to Spurs
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SAN ANTONIO — Luka Doncic was scoring baskets, assisting them and, even after the San Antonio Spurs tried to blitz him to force the basketball out of the Lakers superstar’s hands, Doncic was drawing plays too.
Doncic’s one-man show of 38 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists couldn’t make up for the absences of LeBron James, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura in the Lakers’ 107-91 loss to the Spurs on Wednesday, but Doncic’s leadership for his shorthanded team may have shined brighter than this fourth triple-double of the season.
Saddled with almost all ball-handling responsibilities, Doncic faced regular double-teams from the Spurs (26-11). During a timeout, the 26-year-old grabbed the whiteboard to instruct his teammates what to do when he was getting blitzed. Forward Jake LaRavia couldn’t recall another time Doncic had done that this season.
“Tonight was probably the best [leadership] I’ve seen from him as a Laker,” said guard Gabe Vincent, who returned from a back injury that kept him out for nine games to score six points with two assists in an 18-minute restriction. “Unfortunately, we didn’t come up with a win, but he was encouraging, he was uplifting, he made the right read nine times out of 10 down the floor. He was giving us everything he had and encouraging guys along the way.”
The Lakers (23-12) needed it all from Doncic, who played 38 minutes and 20 seconds one night after scoring 30 points in 37 minutes in a win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
James also scored 30 points in Tuesday’s win but sat out Wednesday because of right sciatica and left foot arthritis. With him, Hachimura and Reaves out, the Lakers had an average of 61 points sidelined.
Doncic looked prepared to carry the load himself. He scored or assisted 14 of the Lakers’ 16 first-half baskets as they trailed by just five. He hit a step-back three and spun around contact in the paint, but he wowed mostly through his playmaking.
Doncic flipped a half-court alley-oop to Jaxson Hayes, who finished it with a reverse dunk. He fired a one-handed cross-court pass over his shoulder and through a maze of outstretched arms to find LaRavia for a corner three-pointer. After bouncing a pass between De’Aaron Fox’s legs to Deandre Ayton, who spun in the lane and finished a layup, Doncic ran up the court shaking his head menacingly.
Two months after his breakout moment with the Lakers, Jake LaRavia authored a long-awaited follow-up story.
The Spurs sent a full-court double team to Doncic later in the second quarter. He giggled in their faces.
“He had the requisite disposition of leadership tonight,” coach JJ Redick said. “His body language, his confidence, he gave his teammates confidence.”
But for all of Doncic’s dazzling dimes, he also had seven turnovers. The Lakers faded down the stretch to 27 points from the Spurs’ Keldon Johnson and 16 points and 14 rebounds by Victor Wembanyama.
Doncic had to shoulder the ball-handling load almost exclusively Wednesday without James and Reaves, who is sidelined until at least the end of the month because of a calf injury. During the Lakers’ three-game winning streak, James’ strengths didn’t come only from his 29-points-per-game average but also his control of the offense. James had 24 assists to just six turnovers in the last three games.
After James had eight assists and one turnover in Tuesday’s win in New Orleans, the 41-year-old forward recognized that he might not be able to play a second game in as many nights.
“His foot typically the day after a game is sore so that’s the primary thing,” Redick said before the game. “… We’re hoping that he gets to the point where he can play in back-to-backs with his body, but this stretch and this month it’s going to be tough to say that.”
The Lakers play 10 of their 16 games on the road this month and have two more sets of back-to-back games. James has yet to play in two games in as many days this season.
With 17 games missed this season, James will not be eligible for postseason awards if he misses one more, meaning his run of 21 consecutive All-NBA honors is at risk.
Hachimura was a partial participant in a practice with the G League affiliate South Bay Lakers on Wednesday as he continues to rehab from a right calf strain. Redick said his availability for Friday’s home game against Milwaukee is “TBD.”
“There wasn’t like a setback,” Redick said. “Just the gradual steps that he needs to take, the comfort level he needs with his body just wasn’t there today.”
In Hachimura’s place, LaRavia started his fifth consecutive game and finished with 16 points and seven rebounds. Hayes led the reserves with 10 points and seven rebounds. The role players who have seized larger opportunities amid the injuries have the Lakers confident in a fully healthy future.
“At some point you assume you’re gonna be at full health,” Redick said, “and I think we’re gonna eventually be a great basketball team.”
