Tag: Luke Walton

How he fell — or was tripped by James — …

How he fell — or was tripped by James — depends on which locker room you were in, obviously. “I think we know what’s going on,” Barnes said. “But for us, it’s moving past this, getting better, and that’s all I’ll say about that.” Kings coach Luke Walton was much more diplomatic in discussing the final play. “We ran a play, we had a chance, we didn’t make it,” Walton said. “All we try to focus on as a team is what we can control and what we can control is execution, knocking down shots, making the extra pass.

LeBron James hits clutch free throws to put Lakers past Kings

The Los Angeles Lakers earned their third straight victory thanks to 29 points and 11 assists from LeBron James on Friday night.

LeBron James had 29 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to their third-straight victory — a 99-97 win over the Sacramento Kings on Friday night. Thanks to a valiant effort from an undermanned but energetic Kings squad, the Lakers barely escaped.

Seven straight points from Bogdan Bogdanovic brought the Kings to 97-97 with just under 20 seconds left, leaving the Lakers and James with the final possession. The Kings’ Harrison Barnes was called for a reach-in foul on James with 5.5 seconds left. James made both free throws, leading to a final play for the Kings. Barnes couldn’t convert on the final lay-up attempt to send the game to overtime, however, thanks to an incredible defensive stop by Anthony Davis.

For much of the early going in Friday’s matchup, the Lakers appeared a little sluggish. But the Lakers closed the half with a fury, capped off by a dunk from James over Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica. Following the half, the Lakers rode that momentum and amassed a four-point lead after three quarters.

James was the catalyst for the Lakers all night long, scoring more than usual while assisting at his regular league-leading rate. With Davis back in the lineup, James once again enjoyed an efficient source of assists offensively and the safety blanket defensively that The Brow provides.

Still, even though the two stars played well, they were unable to pull away from a scrappy Kings team that came into Friday having won four of their last five games. The Kings had a lead midway through the fourth quarter, putting the Lakers on their heels on their home court.

James came out firing in the early going of the final period.

Up by three points, James missed a 3-pointer for the Lakers and then Howard was called for a loose-ball foul with 3:54 remaining. Richaun Holmes made two free throws to cut the lead to one, which was followed by a Lakers basket.

The Kings went to Holmes again, who was guarded by Alex Caruso, but drew a three-point play on LeBron James to tie the game at 90 with 3:25 left. A 3-pointer by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who had a huge fourth quarter, put the Lakers ahead. Caldwell-Pope had scored four points after three quarters but finished with 16 points.

 

 

Walton, who also played for the Lakers, …

Walton, who also played for the Lakers, said he hasn’t dwelled on how he’ll be received by Lakers fans. “I don’t expect anything,” Walton said. “I haven’t thought about that one bit. I love L.A. and had great times down there, but my thoughts are with where this team is at, where we’re trying to get to and what we can do to try to give ourselves the best chance to win.”

Walton said the Lakers present a …

Walton said the Lakers present a different challenge than the other teams the Kings have played because of their size and that they play through LeBron James and Davis instead of relying on guard play. That’s been enough to keep Walton focused on the game and not his feelings. “Most of the thoughts are just, you know how the season goes, right?” Walton said. “So we played two nights ago, and then you just start watching film. Lived in L.A., have a lot of history in L.A., obviously, but the energy and thoughts are all on how do we game plan, what’s our best chance to try to get another win tomorrow night.”

Lakers look to win third straight as they host short-handed Kings

The Los Angeles Lakers welcome the Sacramento Kings for their first meeting of the season.

The Los Angeles Lakers are back on the court Friday night as they prepare to host a short-handed, yet scrappy Sacramento Kings squad as L.A. looks to go on another win streak.

After starting the season 0-5 and one of the most disappointing teams in the NBA to open the season, the Kings have won four of their last five games and won their most recent one without star point guard De’Aaron Fox. They’ve been without Marvin Bagley since the first week of the season with a fractured right thumb and the Fox injury came earlier this week, robbing them of their best player.

Nevertheless, they stayed on a roll with a home win against a struggling Portland Trail Blazers squad even without Fox. Forward Bogdan Bogdanovic poured in 25 points off the bench and might be the biggest threat the Lakers have to consider on the offensive end.

Shooting guard Buddy Hield will also present a challenge to the Lakers with his movement away from the ball and his ability to shoot the ball from deep spots on the floor. Harrison Barnes can also take advantage of switches if he gets smaller players on him in the post, though the Lakers size might take that away tonight.

The Kings aren’t good, but they certainly aren’t as bad as their start. While the Lakers have been rolling, they can’t take them lightly. And seeing as they are coached by former Lakers coach Luke Walton, they’ll likely be a little motivated to dominate against a mostly unheralded group.