On the same night that he got his championship ring from the Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers guard Danny Green scored 28 points, including several big 3-pointers in the final minutes to hold off an L.A. comeback, 109-101. The loss for the Lakers is their fourth straight as they continue to play without LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
The Lakers gave themselves a shot on Thursday night. While they were without their two stars, the Lakers were physical and scrapped with the Sixers who were also without their own MVP candidate, center Joel Embiid. The Lakers looked to have an even better chance when Howard, was ejected in the first half of Thursday’s game. But Philadelphia’s monster third quarter was too much for the Lakers to come back from.
In particular, the presence of Ben Simmons was a huge difference-maker for the Sixers on both ends. His assists created points and his defense was constantly disruptive for a Lakers team already fighting an uphill battle. Tobias Harris and Danny Green were also key in the win.
A 3-pointer by Kuzma, capping a 20-8 run, cut the Sixers lead to 101-96 with 3 minutes left, seemingly giving the Lakers a little life and forcing a Philadelphia timeout. But the Lakers were unable to complete the comeback getting no closer than three points in the final seconds.