Anytime the Atlanta Hawks tried to make a game out of it, LeBron James made sure that wasn’t a possibility.
The Los Angeles Lakers jumped out to a 30-6 lead to start and the Hawks never got within single digits as they cruised to a 122-101 win. The victory was the team’s fourth straight and improved their record to 11-2, the best in the NBA.
James continued his MVP caliber play with 33 points, 12 assists, and seven rebounds. He was lights out from beyond the arc as well, knocking down 6-of-10 from deep.
The Lakers also got a huge boost from their bench which continues to improve. Rajon Rondo had his best game of the early season with 15 points while Kyle Kuzma added 17. Alex Caruso also had another solid showing with 11 points.
The Hawks didn’t go down without a fight as huge runs in the second and third quarters cut the Lakers lead to 10 on separate occasions. But James simply refused to let it get any closer and Los Angeles would quickly respond to keep the comfortable lead.
The Hawks were lead by Trae Young who had 31 points and seven assists, but the Hawks shot just 42.4% from the field and 28.4% from deep as the Lakers defense was in full effect.
This was especially the case in the paint as the Lakers recorded 14 blocks as a team. Anthony Davis led the way there with five rejections, Dwight Howard had three, and Danny Green and JaVale McGee each added a pair.
Green provided the highlight of the night with a massive putback dunk at the end of the first half that sent the crowd and his teammates into a frenzy. He also had a great night overall with 11 points, seven rebounds, and two steals.
Davis was actually one of the few Lakers to struggle, scoring just 14 points with one rebound on 5-of-14 from the field. But it didn’t matter as the team was on fire.
The Lakers shot 52.8 percent from the field, 42.9 percent from deep, and 81.3 percent from the line in what might be their best overall shooting night of the season so far.
Next up for the Lakers is a home date with Chris Paul and the Oklahoma City before they hit the road for four straight games.
