On the 20th anniversary of Kobe Bryant scoring 81 points, the NBA schedule makers nailed it, with a “Prime” time rivalry matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and the LA Clippers.
While Los Angeles versus LA is always played out in the City of Angels, this matchup felt slightly more intriguing.
The Lakers came out in their black City Edition uniforms, which are usually reserved for special occasions, and the Clippers, the hottest team in the NBA, activated Kawhi Leonard after a three-game absence.
The battle at the Intuit Dome pitted two teams with wildly contrasting narratives this season, and that is also exactly how the game played out.
Early on, it was the Kawhi Leonard versus Luka Doncic show as the two superstars took turns exchanging baskets before the Clippers took off and built a massive lead. Doncic ended the night with 32 points, while Leonard scored 24 in limited minutes.
After trailing by as many as 26, the Lakers fought their way all the way back to cut the lead to 2 with just under 6 minutes remaining and then again to 3 with 90 seconds on the clock. Ultimately, the Clippers outlasted their former arena mate to hold on for a 112-104 win.
Despite the victory, Tyronn Lue was not satisfied.
“We have to take the next step. We keep getting these leads, only to lose them. We have to be better. When we have a team down 19 at half, we have to step on their throats and blow them out,” said Lue.
“And that’s not just the Lakers, anybody. If you are up 20, let’s just blow them out. Why not? It is what it is, and it’s a good win for us. They are a good team, so we will take it,” Lue continued.
It has been a consistent theme for the Clippers this season to build a massive lead before turning the ball over and becoming stagnant in the second half. Luckily, the final results on the scoreboard have been different during this recent stretch.
“These are games that we were losing early on in the season. Now we have the composure to stay with it when teams make runs. They got it down to 2, but then we got it back up to 11 just by keeping our composure and making the right play,” said Lue.
With the win, the Clippers improve to 2-1 against the Lakers this season and are 14-3 since beating them back in late December.
The Clippers have clawed their way back into contention, while the Lakers have slowly been creeping their way in the wrong direction. The Lakers still hold a substantial lead in the standings over their crosstown rival, but if things stay the way they have been going, the two could easily see each other in the Play-In Tournament, something that seemed very unlikely a month ago.
The more glorified Los Angeles basketball team started the season strong, flirting with the top few spots in the Western Conference standings for much of the first two months of the season. That has since changed, as they now find themselves hovering just above the cut line for a guaranteed playoff spot.
“We have to be better in the first half. Our defense was excellent in the second half, and we just have to transfer that to the first half,” said Doncic. “Obviously, I think the energy was there. I didn’t help the team enough to win this game, but I think the energy from everybody was there, and we just have to stay together.”
The Lakers await the return of Austin Reaves, who JJ Redick said pregame is ramping up. Reaves has missed the last 14 games and was putting together an All-Star season, averaging 26.6 points per game, before straining his calf. His absence has corresponded with the Lakers’ slide to mediocrity.
Not having Reaves on the offensive end has really hurt them, and when he is inserted back into the starting lineup, it will take a ton of pressure off Doncic and LeBron James.
These two teams will meet one more time in late February, in the building they used to share. There is a good chance that the matchup will also be a highly significant and entertaining Western Conference showdown.
Benjamin Verbrugge is a reporter for News4usonline who studied journalism at CSU Dominguez Hills. “Sports have brought me much joy throughout my life, and I want to give a little back to something that has meant so much to me.” Email Benjamin at benverbrugge8@gmail.com.
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