Los Angeles Lakers tasted their first win since the death of Kobe Bryant as the Showtime beat the Sacramento Kings 113-129 at Golden 1 Center. That result also snapped their two-game skid in the process.
Following an emotional loss against the Portland Trail Blazers and Damian Lillard less than 24 hours ago, the Lakers were back to their best as they decimated Sacramento in the first quarter, outscoring their hosts 44-22. And despite the Kings’ threatening a comeback in the second quarter, the 16-time champions never surrendered their lead in the game and held onto the win.
LeBron James hailed the result as therapeutic and the part of the Lakers’ healing process. He clocked another triple-double with 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, though he had a terrible shooting by his own lofty standards. Anthony Davis also had a quiet night, with the former New Orleans Pelicans managing 21 points, six assists and four rebounds.
Bench made a telling difference for the Lakers. Kyle Kuzma once again showed why he is critical to Lakers’ chances this season as he had a good game with 12 points on 10 shots. Avery Bradley ended with 19 points after his hot start, and Alex Caruso made most of the increased minutes he clocked in this game and had 13 points while burying three of his five threes.
For Sacramento Kings, De’Aaron Fox had a team-high effort with 24 points, while Buddy Hield continued to feature from the bench, and scored 22 points. Harry Giles started at Centre for the injured Dewayne Dedmon and made a good case for more minutes as he ended with 16 points and 8 boards.
After that result, the Lakers stay hot at the top of Western Conference rankings and enjoy a three-and-a-half game advantage over Denver Nuggets in second place. Lakers will start their two-game home stretch with a tilt against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, before facing Houston Rockets next Friday.
Kings slipped down to 13th and below a resurgent New Orleans Pelicans in the West after that defeat and facing a six-game deficit in the playoff race.
