LeBron gives masterclass in Doncic’s return from daddy duties

Great effort by the Lakers in a Sunday game embedded in their East Coast road swing, a demanding stretch of the schedule. Losing to the Celtics – given the historical weight of that rivalry – always stings, so easing the pain with a win right after was the ideal remedy. This one mattered because it marked the return of Luka Doncic to the US after two games away, during which the franchise granted him permission to travel back to Slovenia for the birth of his second daughter.

The fatigue of the trip was evident in the guard, who shot 9-for-24 from the field, yet his command over the Sixers felt as familiar as ever. He still reached a triple-double with 31 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists. In his 39 minutes he also turned the ball over five times and added two blocks. Olivia, the newest addition to his family, arrived with a win attached. But on a tight night, it was L.A.’s other megastar who decided the outcome. Watching he was in rhythm, the smart move was to keep feeding him. LeBron James, with ten decisive points in the final five minutes, wore the crown in Philadelphia, where the Lakers sealed a 112-108 victory.

The Sixers saw their winning streak end at three. Seven of their ten losses have now come at the Xfinity Mobile Arena, as their home building is currently known. They missed even a grounded version of Joel Embiid, who struggled badly: he missed ten of his eleven field goal attempts in the first half and finished 4-for-21 overall.

There was little consolation for rookie V.J. Edgecombe, who scored 15 and received James’s jersey after the battle. Tyrese Maxey was their standout with 28. Paul George, in the starting five, remains far from his best – he took only eight shots and finished with 12 points. For the Lakers, it was a mixed night for Ayton and Reaves; the center was flawless at 7-for-7, while the guard endured a rough outing and closed at 3-for-14.

The Lakers straighten their path ahead of one of the most intriguing tests of the season. Their next game comes against the Spurs in the quarterfinals of the in-season tournament. Victor Wembanyama might return from injury for that showdown. The team from Los Angeles inaugurated the tournament’s roll of honor two years ago and, with a win at home, hope to relive the Las Vegas Final Four and compete for the title next week.

Neither James nor Doncic played at the Garden in the previous outing: the Slovenian was away for the birth of his daughter, and James sat out not only because of sciatica but also due to newly developed arthritis in his left foot. That night ended in defeat. This Sunday was different. The game opened evenly, so much so that the score was knotted at 30 at the end of the first quarter. The imbalance arrived in the second. The Lakers went 4:19 without scoring a field goal, which stretched the deficit to eight. A couple of long-range shots from Doncic and Reaves kept them afloat. After halftime, they recovered. Five points from the king of Akron and a pair of threes from his teammates lifted JJ Redick’s squad back into the lead.

In the final quarter, again, a small offensive drought from the visitors allowed the hosts to creep close. Embiid, despite his struggles, tied it at 105 with 1:29 left. James, who had resolved to take over in the closing stretch, followed through: a straight-on jumper with a toe on the line, good; a catch-and-shoot drifting slightly left, good; a second straight three-pointer from the same spot, good; and, with a three-point lead and thirty seconds remaining, a challenge to Quentin Grimes, a step-back to create separation, and the shot that sealed it. A gift worthy of a player approaching 41.

Other results from the NBA:

• Knicks 100 - Magic 106
• Raptors 106 - Celtics 121
• Hornets 106 - Nuggets 115
• Bulls 91 - Warriors 123
• Jazz 101 - Thunder 131
• Grizzlies 119 - Blazers 96

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Philadelphia 76ers

Stats

25 Dominick Barlow
8 Paul George
21 Joel Embiid
77 VJ Edgecombe
0 Tyrese Maxey
30 Adem Bona
22 Johni Broome
1 Andre Drummond
11 Justin Edwards
23 Eric Gordon
5 Quentin Grimes
7 Kyle Lowry
20 Jared McCain
33 Jabari Walker
45 Hunter Sallis

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
25 Dominick Barlow	23	7	4	2	2	0	0	1	0	2/2	1/5	1/2	0	3	0
8 Paul George	32	12	6	0	6	3	1	1	0	5/5	2/5	1/3	0	3	0
21 Joel Embiid	30	16	7	2	5	2	0	1	1	8/8	4/15	0/6	0	1	0
77 VJ Edgecombe	37	15	5	2	3	3	1	0	0	3/3	3/10	2/3	0	4	0
0 Tyrese Maxey	38	28	7	0	7	9	3	2	2	1/2	6/16	5/8	0	2	0
30 Adem Bona	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
22 Johni Broome	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
1 Andre Drummond	17	11	12	8	4	0	0	0	1	1/2	5/10	0/1	0	1	0
11 Justin Edwards	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
23 Eric Gordon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
5 Quentin Grimes	29	7	8	3	5	3	0	0	0	2/2	1/1	1/6	0	0	0
7 Kyle Lowry	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
20 Jared McCain	12	8	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	0/0	1/3	2/4	0	2	0
33 Jabari Walker	17	4	4	0	4	0	0	0	0	1/2	0/1	1/3	0	1	0
45 Hunter Sallis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0

Los Angeles Lakers

Stats

28 Rui Hachimura
23 LeBron James
5 Deandre Ayton
77 Luka Dončić
15 Austin Reaves
11 Jaxson Hayes
9 Bronny James Jr.
14 Maxi Kleber
4 Dalton Knecht
12 Jake LaRavia
1 Adou Thiero
2 Jarred Vanderbilt
7 Gabe Vincent
30 Chris Mañon
3 Nick Smith Jr.
17 Drew Timme

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
28 Rui Hachimura	36	17	6	2	4	1	0	0	0	0/0	4/5	3/7	0	3	0
23 LeBron James	34	29	7	1	6	6	2	1	1	1/2	8/11	4/6	0	1	0
5 Deandre Ayton	31	14	12	2	10	2	0	1	1	0/0	7/7	0/0	0	4	0
77 Luka Dončić	38	31	15	1	14	11	5	0	2	11/14	7/15	2/9	0	1	0
15 Austin Reaves	39	11	4	1	3	4	2	1	1	3/5	1/10	2/6	0	0	0
11 Jaxson Hayes	16	3	5	1	4	0	0	0	3	1/4	1/1	0/0	0	5	0
9 Bronny James Jr.	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
14 Maxi Kleber	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
4 Dalton Knecht	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
12 Jake LaRavia	17	4	2	0	2	0	1	0	0	1/2	0/0	1/4	0	3	0
1 Adou Thiero	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0
2 Jarred Vanderbilt	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/1	0	1	0
7 Gabe Vincent	19	3	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	1/3	0	3	0
30 Chris Mañon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
3 Nick Smith Jr.	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
17 Drew Timme	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0