Laker Austin Reaves drives past Clipper James Harden in the second quarter at the Intuit Dome Tuesday.
Laker Austin Reaves drives past Clipper James Harden in the second quarter at the Intuit Dome Tuesday.
Of course the Lakers were excited, a perennial MVP candidate now sitting on the end of their bench in Luka Doncic, a 25-year-old offensive maestro now on their roster.
Of course, the offensive possibilities of him playing with LeBron James and with Austin Reaves, of whipping passes to Dorian Finney-Smith and Rui Hachimura for open corner threes have JJ Redick ready to get to work.
But no matter what happened during the Lakers’ 122-97 win over the Clippers on Tuesday, the team’s feelings after this trade are certainly more complex.
“Yeah, I ain’t never seen this one,” LeBron James said. “I have seen it all up until this one. I have never been a part of one transaction like that. That was different.”
For 47 games, the Lakers tried to solve the problems their roster presented, finding the best ways to cover up their flaws, accentuate their strengths and maximize their potential. And after a win last Saturday night against the Knicks, the Lakers could see it.
: General Manager Rob Pelinka, left, introduces new Lakers player Luka Doncic, right, at the Lakers training facility in El Segundo on Tuesday, February 4, 2025. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
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“Guys are going to feel a certain way,” coach JJ Redick said pregame. “And there’s a grieving process. There’s an excitement and a rebirth process. There’s all of these things and those things take time. It’s not, we’re not going to wave a magic wand and say, ‘Ah, we’re good today.’ Like it takes time. The important thing is that the mission has not changed and how we go about doing that mission has not changed.”
But even without Anthony Davis, even without Max Christie and even without Doncic, who is still recovering from a calf injury, the Lakers looked like a team still intent on accomplishing that mission, melancholy or not.
“Basketball is an outlet for all of us,” Reaves said. “Any time you can come together as a group and kinda forget everything else that’s going on in the world and just compete as a group, one common goal to go win a basketball game, is, I think my favorite part about basketball and it being a team sport, is once you hit the court out there, nothing else matters in that moment. It all about, what you’re going to do to help your team be successful.
“And the way we came out with the energy, the effort defensively, we’re flying around, really paying attention to the details in the game plan. It was one of our best performances all year. “
Against the Clippers at Intuit Dome, the Lakers continued to play with the kind of intensity, the kind of focus and the kind of execution that had them believing they could win this season in the first place.
EL SEGUNDO, CA, FEBRUARY 4, 2025: New Lakers player Luka Doncic speaks to reporters at the Lakers training facility in El Segundo on Tuesday, February 4, 2025. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
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James, like he was for most of the Lakers’ recent road trip, played with the kind of timeless energy on both ends of the court that shouldn’t be possible for a player in Season 22. He scored 26 points on eight-of-13 shooting after opening the game by making his first five shots. And without Davis or Christie on the floor, he was one of the Lakers’ most active defenders.
Reaves and Hachimura scored 20 each — the 40 points coming on only 27 combined shots. Reaves adding nine assists. And Jaxson Hayes, the Lakers’ likely starting center moving forward, played 24 minutes with six points, six rebounds, four assists — and only two fouls — giving the Lakers an athletic presence around the rim on both sides of the court.
The Lakers officially closed a stretch of six straight on the road for their Grammy trip with their fifth win. And their biggest piece isn’t even out there yet.
Doncic is scheduled to participate in a scrimmage on Wednesday and could debut for the Lakers as soon as Saturday.
The Clippers looked mostly lifeless in a game where they never led by more than a point. Kawhi Leonard, who carved up the Lakers’ defense in their last meeting, scored only 11 points in 23 minutes. Ivica Zubac, who dominated the interior so soundly that Davis publicly asked for the Lakers to add a center one day later, made just two shots to go with his 10 rebounds. And on the perimeter, Finney-Smith harassed James Harden into a two-for-12 night during which he scored only seven points, his second-worst scoring game of the season.
The Lakers held the Clippers to 37.8% shooting, their fifth-worst shooting game of the season. The Lakers ended up with five different players with at least six rebounds.
The end of James’ partnership with Davis undoubtedly will linger with the Lakers’ 40-year-old star. Postgame Tuesday, James spoke with plenty of sadness in his voice, choosing to keep a lengthy post-trade Facetime call with Davis private will saying their time as teammates was “special.”
“Just knowing that he was going to be gone, that was very, very difficult. Very challenging,” James said. “I could see how in shock he was, obviously. And he probably saw it from my face as well.”
James, though, said that the trade hasn’t changed his future plans with the Lakers at least as far as this season, saying that if he had an issue with the organization planning for its future with Doncic, he’d “waive my no-trade clause and get up out of here.”
Doncic smiled as he watched James bully the Clippers on both ends of the court, another top-tier performance for James on the heels of him winning the Western Conference player of the week Award on Monday.
Los Angeles, California January 23, 2025- Lakers LeBron James is introduced before a game.
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“I thought he led us on both ends and said something that every few games, he’s raising his hand asking for a sub. He’s going full tilt on both ends of the floor,” Redick said after. “And it would be very easy for him given his resume and accomplishments and age and frankly bank account if he wanted to just save himself for offense. He’s playing both sides of the ball, giving everything he has. Another great game from him.”
Postgame, the players felt good about what they had just done, their defensive identity carrying over from their win in New York Saturday when everything changed. Their was some comfort in that, at least, staying the same.
But they know up and down the roster that this is no longer the same team. And it’ll never be again.
“You create real relationships with these guys, and that’s been the toughest part for me,” Reaves said. “After a couple games here recently, we’ve been on the bus and AD would bring his phone up to him and it would be his kid. And he would be telling AD, ‘I want to talk to Reaves.’ And I would always tell him to do the (three-point) celebration and he would start doing it.
“So it’s just little things like that are why it’s tough. It’s a business and you gotta, get past that. And look forward to what we got now.”
