Despite not having their star players on rotation, the Los Angeles Lakers came too close to beating the Denver Nuggets on Friday night. Luka Dodonic missed the game due to left calf injury management and LeBron James is still recovering from a left groin strain, so he missed his third game in a row. This meant that the Lakers did not have four critical players available to them during the game.
Even with these hurdles, the squad showed an incredible amount of perseverance. Austin Reaves and rookie Dalton Knecht had a stellar showing, scoring 37 and 32 points respectively, which allowed the Lakers recover from a double digit deficit deep into the third quarter. The Lakers managed to secure the lead 126-123 with under a minute left, testing Denver’s resolve to the fullest.
Eventually, it was clear the Nuggets had the final say with their superstars leading the charge. Nikola Jokic scored an impressive last minute three point play, Jamal Murray surged forward with a three pointer five seconds later, and Russell Westbrook dominated by scoring an almighty dunk from the inbounds pass.
Lakers coach JJ. Redick highlighted his team’s competitiveness saying, I’m proud of the group for their level of resiliency. We didn’t start great in the second half, but we kept battling.
Before the showdown with the Phoenix Suns set for Sunday, James, Jaxson Hayes (bruised right knee), and Rui Hachimura (left patellar tendinopathy) returned to Los Angeles to rest, while Finney-Smith and Gabe Vincent sat out to manage left ankle injuries.
Aside from the heart-breaking near victory, there’s another reason to be optimistic for the Lakers. Bronny James, LeBron’s son, returned from G league and played 16 minutes scoring five points.
While the Lakers were denied an easy matchup, Michael Malone did acknowledge the fight LA put up to his Denver team. “This isn’t a beauty contest,” he said. “We don’t get rated on our wins. But give them credit—They played their hearts out.”
