With LeBron James sidelined, the Los Angeles Lakers, led by Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves, and D'Angelo Russell, erased a 19-point fourth-quarter deficit to stun the Milwaukee Bucks in double-overtime, 128-124, at a raucous Fiserv Forum on Tuesday night.
The Lakers' second thrilling victory over Milwaukee without LeBron this month marked the first stop on what LeBron called a “testy” East Coast excursion.
“It was a great way to start off a six-game trip,” said Darvin Ham.
Ham said Tuesday's win “might be top-three” of the season. AD replied “not sure” when asked if it was their best win of 2023-24.
“It was a good win to start the road trip, for sure.”
Best? Who knows. Most improbable, and most important, all things considered? Surely.
The result moved the Lakers (40-32) within two games of the Phoenix Suns (42-30) for the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference standings. Los Angeles owns the tie-breaker.
Vibes-wise, the comeback and ensuing buckling down in overtime displayed a grittiness that resembles the squad that discovered a new level around this time last year (as LeBron managed a foot injury) en route to the conference finals. Don't look now, but these Lakers, winners of four straight, are playing their best ball of the season.
The Lakers play the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night.
“There's two things you can do,” said Reaves, who posted his second career triple-double with 34 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists. “You can fold and go to Memphis tomorrow, or you can man up and face the challenge head-on.”
Milwaukee was supposed to be the excusable L on the trip, especially once LeBron was ruled out with ankle soreness (the Lakers also face the Grizzlies, Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets, Toronto Raptors, and Washington Wizards). Things seemed headed in that direction when the Lakers missed 15 of their first 17 shots to open the game.
The Lakers kept clawing back, until the Bucks blew it open to start the fourth. Ham was one whistle away from pulling his starters, only for a sudden 7-0 spurt to prompt a Doc Rivers timeout with 6:56 to go.
“I told them we got enough time to get this done,” Ham said. The Lakers trailed 94-82.
“Coach always gives us the first five to six minutes (of the fourth) to try to cut the lead down,” said Davis. “From that point, we feel like we had the momentum. Kept chipping away. Kept getting stops. Kept making shots on the other end.
“A 20-point lead in this league now, it's nothing.”
The @Lakers take their first lead of the game on back-to-back threes from AD and Dinwiddie! 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/5p6SovNxfo
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 27, 2024
Both teams, visibly grassed, struggled to score throughout OT. Giannis missed two key free throws, much to the delight of LeBron. Davis blocked Damian Lillard's potential Dame-winner. Reaves' triple with 37.8 seconds in 2OT proved to be the game-winner. (He earned an explicit tribute from Russell.)
AUSTIN REAVES WITH ANOTHER HUGE THREE 🤯 pic.twitter.com/JLslEc0y5Y
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 27, 2024
Coming off their record-setting track meet with Indiana, the Lakers again posted rarely-seen numbers. AD — who banged his knee late in the game and had to receive treatment — posted 34 points (12-of-31 shooting!), 23 rebounds, and four blocks. His career-high of 52 minutes was the most any Lakers player has tallied since Kobe Bryant in 2012.
“Kudos to him,” said Ham. “He played his ass off.”
D'Angelo Russell (29 points, 12 assists) continues to produce at an All-Star level. The Lakers grabbed 69 rebounds (most since 1993) and shot 30-32 (92.8%) from the free-throw line.
“Huge win for the team. Everybody pitched in. Darvin was amazing, man,” said Russell — by my recollection the first time this season a Lakers player has publicly lauded Ham's Xs-and-Os. “He drew up some great sets for us at the end of the game and gave us some good looks. I think emotionally, we were all put in on that one. Everybody was two feet in on that game wanting to do whatever it took.”
Ultimately, the Lakers won because of their defense. Los Angeles held Lillard (27 points) to 9-of-29 from the field and 3-of-14 from 3. Khris Middleton shot 4-of-15. Milwaukee scored 13 points in the fourth quarter, and 30 points across the final 18:25 of action.
Without or without LeBron, the Lakers trust their mental fortitude in close games. As much as LeBron (OK, maybe not quite), that'll help them stay competitive with Bucks-level contenders in the playoffs.
“We know where we're trying to get to, where we are in the standings,” said AD. “For us, as a unit, especially with Bron out, guys had to step up. We did that on both ends of the floor.”
LeBron's status vs. Memphis is TBD. Following the gutsy effort at the Fiserv Forum, his teammates— especially Davis — might need the 39-year-old to carry the load on the second leg of a back-to-back.
“58-minute game,” said Davis. “We line it up and do it all again tomorrow.”
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