The Los Angeles Lakers have come to embody the “next man up” mentality over the last couple of weeks. They rallied without Anthony Davis against Golden State on Christmas, and in their next time out, they prevailed against Sacramento without LeBron James.
Last night was no different. As a result of lingering ankle soreness, Davis was ruled out for the team’s home game against the Portland Trail Blazers, while Gabe Vincent remained sidelined with a hip injury for the second straight game.
Taking the floor without their All-Star big man, Los Angeles desperately needed the rest of the team to step up. And that they did. The Lakers received several impactful contributions from many of their players – some expected, some not – on their way to a 114-106 win over the Blazers.
Jaxson Hayes and Christian Koloko were “fantastic” in place of Anthony Davis
Jaxson Hayes had not played since November 26 due to an ankle injury. He was available for the first time in over a month the other night but ended up not seeing the floor. With AD out, though, Hayes got the start and immediately made his presence felt. On the first play of the game, James found Hayes on the pick-and-roll for an emphatic one-handed slam.
Christian Koloko didn’t even suit up for the team’s last game against Cleveland. Nonetheless, he served as the backup for Hayes and reintroduced himself to the lineup in the same way. At the six-minute mark of the first quarter, Koloko set a screen for Austin Reaves, who found the big man on the roll for a soaring, two-handed jam.
The big man platoon of Hayes and Koloko came up huge in place of Davis. Hayes had four points and six rebounds (two offensive) while Koloko notched eight points and eight boards (six offensive), with both of the 24-year-old seven-footers significantly bolstering the team’s defensive presence.
After the game, Hayes credited his teammate and himself for doing everything they could to fill the shoes of Davis:
“CK was balling today,” said Hayes. “We just had to be those guys since AD wasn’t there to hold down the paint.”
Lakers head coach JJ Redick was especially impressed with the impact performances of both big men, commending the pair for being ready to go:
“Both those guys were fantastic,” said Redick in his postgame interview. “There’s a testament and an example there for just being professional and staying ready… Excited for both those guys that they had big time games for us.”
Max Christie had a career night against Portland
In the team’s last outing against Cleveland, Max Christie struggled immensely from the floor. The 21-year-old guard mustered just five points in 28 minutes, hitting only one of the five threes he attempted.
However, when his team needed him the most, he had the best game of his young career.
Christie erupted for a career-high 28 points on just 16 shots, drilling a personal-best five deep balls at a 56% clip from downtown. He scored seven points in the fourth quarter alone – including a three and an and-one – which helped the team pull ahead down the stretch. On top of that, he asserted himself on the defensive end with two steals and a block.
“My three-point shot was working tonight, for sure. I think I got to the line a decent amount, too,” said Christie when asked about what was working for him on the offensive end. “I thought I had a good bounce back from the first quarter, I think I started 1-for-4 or whatever, but I stayed aggressive and knocked down some corner threes. Austin and LeBron and those guys did a great job of finding me when I was open and I was able to knock them down.”
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LeBron James continues to amaze at 40-years-old
James has always referred to himself as a pass-first player. But if there’s one thing he’s made clear throughout his 22-year career, it’s that he can go off whenever a situation calls for it.
The 40-year-old vet mirrored a 25-year-old phenom as he recorded 38 points and eight assists on 60% shooting from the floor. He was automatic from downtown, knocking down a season-high seven threes on 10 attempts.
Complementing Christie’s late-game production, LeBron took over in the fourth with 11 points, hitting the dagger three with 58 seconds to go.
In his last five games, LeBron is averaging 30 points, six rebounds and eight assists on 57% shooting from the floor and 47% from deep. When asked about how he remains so efficient at this stage in his career, James credited his preparation and explained that it’s nothing new to him:
“I just key in on the things that I work on before the game when I come in early and get shots up and prepare mentally so I can go out there and play an efficient game,” James told reporters after the game. “I’ve always been efficient in my career, so I just try to continue that when I get on the floor and take great shots, keep my guys involved and try to get wins.”
Having won six of their last eight games, the Lakers improved to 19-14 and sit at sixth in the Western Conference. They return to action tonight when they welcome the Atlanta Hawks to Crypto.com Arena at 10:30 p.m. Eastern.