The new-looking Los Angeles Lakers claimed another LA matchup. Their city rivals came to the Crypto.com Arena for the first time this season. It led to one of the most thrilling Los Angeles contests in recent times. The Clippers had their moments to upset the Purple and Gold. But two juggernauts did their thing. Luka Doncic and LeBron James secured another victory for the Lakers to now move closer to the third seed.
To the Clippers, their dynamic itself was tricky to handle. But what exactly did the Clippers struggle with? Kawhi Leonard, arguably one of the best defenders of this generation helped with that. Both James and Doncic are high-IQ basketball players. With their watchfulness on the court, they took advantage by placing themselves in favorable spots.
“That right there just you know them being smart enough to hunt the match, their shot making obviously and you know the ability to pass and they played well tonight,” Leonard said about the new Lakers star duo.
Feb 27, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) celebrates with forward LeBron James (23) after making a basket during the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images
The Lakers couldn’t divert to their usually high passing system after losing Austin Reaves in just nine minutes. So much of the heavy lifting came on to LeBron James and Luka Doncic. The Akron Hammer barely made a wrong move all night relying on his physical prowess and strength to score.
On the other hand, Doncic struggled for a significant portion. However, in the fourth quarter, he spotted the mismatch. Ivica Zubac regularly switched to him. To the Slovenian guard, a center guarding him is the license to attack. Doncic hit two consecutive threes to virtually put the game away for the Clippers.
But even with the two combining for 59 of the 106 points, the Clippers had every chance to steal the game. They just weren’t clinical.
Only the Clippers are to blame for their loss
Tyronn Lue spoke about the game with the reporters after the game. Having formerly coached LeBron James, Lue had some inside tricks to get the better of the King. They seemed to be working too. The Clippers were within two points with four minutes remaining in the game. However, they cut the rope that would help them take the lead.
The Clippers committed back-to-back turnovers. The Lakers capitalized on both of them. Such moments were prominent throughout the game for the Clippers. Ty Lue reinforced how ‘every possession matters’. He blamed such lapses in the critical moments of the game for their loss tonight. And he only had one message for the team. They have to be better.
“Just got to take care of the basketball you know every possession counts and we didn’t do a good job. I think it was a two-point game and we had three turnovers in a row which kind of helped them break the game open… Like I said 18 turnovers against this team, they’re going to get out in transition get easy points and that’s what we allowed them to do,” the Clippers head coach said after the game.
Those turnovers generated 25 points for the Los Angeles Lakers. Moreover, the Clippers also missed some key free throws, making just five of their eight in the fourth quarter. Had they avoided that, the Clippers had more going in their favor than against them. Both Rui Hachimura and Reaves were absent from the game. Without Hachimura in particular, the lack of size enabled Zubac to have a big night, which he did. However, the unforced errors towards the end hindered the Clippers from putting together any kind of run.
The loss now puts them in a precarious position. Their record is equal with the Golden State Warriors. So any wrong step could mean having to go through the Play-In to have a chance at making the postseason. So the urgency to solve these errors is high. And Ty Lue will hope this game underscores the importance of ball security and execution.
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