Given the way LeBron James played on Saturday, you wouldn’t know he would have to decide on game time due to a knee injury.
James recorded his 103rd career double to lead the Lakers to a 122-115 victory in an overtime thriller with the Knicks. James finished with 29 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists over 40 minutes, his fifth career double against New York.
The Lakers were indeed successful early on; The Knicks took an 11-0 lead in the first two minutes of the game. Their lead spiked to 21 points in the second half of the second quarter, and they went into the break by 15 points.
Whatever Frank Vogel and his staff say in the locker room at halftime, it works. Los Angeles opened fire in the third quarter, slowly but surely getting back into the game. Then, with 4:42 remaining in time, Anthony Davis threw down a sloping ball that gave the Lakers an 80-79 lead.
Los Angeles finished third with a score of 87-84. New York tied it shortly after, but after that, the Lakers went for the most part and held a somewhat comfortable lead.
But with just over two minutes left, RJ Barrett fouled and took the lead down to seven; then Julius Randle cut it into five with a pair of free throws of his own. Evan Fournier cut it to 4 minutes later, and then Barrett flew into the lane and threw home a dribble making it a ball possession game with 40.1 to play.
The Lakers were left empty-handed the next time they held the ball even though the Knicks were technically fouled, and New York moved down for a chance to equalize. Fournier found Barrett extended to three, and the third year continued to bury it to knot it at 111 per person. James missed three near the end of regulation, and overtime began.
However, James wouldn’t let that miss affect him, as he and the Lakers stepped onto the pitch and took control of everything in extra time straight away. After no one scored for the first 97 seconds, James threw a ball down to take the lead and then passed it to Talen Horton-Tucker the next time around to put the Lakers four points ahead.
Randle shortened the lead to two, but Malik Monk and Trevor Ariza grabbed a quick five to put the game in the ice. Leading by five, Davis beat it with 23.7 left to mark the victory.
In addition to his brace, James scored 13 goals for 24 from the field and got +12 plus/minus points. Davis finished with 28 points and 17 rebounds, and Monk chipped away with 29 points.
Barrett led all scorers in the game with 36 points, while also recording eight rebounds and five assists. Randle finished with 32 points, 16 pounds and seven dimes.
