After losing to the Golden State Warriors in their first game after the All-Star break, the Los Angeles Lakers flew back home to southern California to host the San Antonio Spurs.
Like the Lakers, the Spurs were coming off their own loss against the Sacramento Kings and were looking to bounce back. Fortunately enough, Los Angeles was the one to emerge victorious as they beat San Antonio 123-118 to get back on track in the win column.
The game featured some of the best No. 1 overall picks in NBA history as Anthony Davis and LeBron James took on Victor Wembanyama. It felt like a matchup between past, present and future as James represents the old guard, Davis the current generation of stars and Wembanyama the next wave.
Wembanyama got the best of the Lakers duo in the first quarter as he was unguardable from the opening tip. Wembanyama scored from all three levels of the floor, showing off his length and range in the half-court.
However, Davis made sure to stop Wembanyama from causing too much damage as he went right at him on the offensive end. Davis took it upon himself to force the Spurs’ young star to defend him and the Lakers’ All-Star got the best of him on a couple of occasions.
There was one play where Davis took Wembanyama off the dribble and got all the way to the rim for a nice finish. Davis wound up with another double-double of 28 points and 13 rebounds and was able to rest for the entire fourth quarter.
James returned to the lineup after missing the previous night with his ankle injury and he looked like his old self with the basketball. Not only did LeBron have his burst back, but he also had his jumper working for him.
San Antonio didn’t have much of an answer for James, who scored a game-high 30 points to go along with nine assists, seven rebounds, and one steal.
D’Angelo Russell had a rough night against the Warriors, but looked more like the player that caught fire before the break. Russell was a reliable scoring option for Los Angeles as he dropped 22 points, including 3-of-7 from distance and perfect 3-of-3 from the free throw line.
Despite the loss, Wembanyama made history as he became just the second rookie with a five-by-five. It was just the 22nd game of that kind ever as the French phenom finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five steals and five blocks.
What’s next for Lakers
The Lakers’ upcoming schedule gets much more difficult from this point forward. They go back on the road to take on the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, then head back to Los Angeles for a “road” game against the L.A. Clippers.
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