During the 2022-23 season, perhaps no member of the Los Angeles Lakers’ early season rotation was as affected by the moves made at the trade deadline than Lonnie Walker IV. An early-season staple, Walker had fallen out of Darvin Ham’s rotation down the stretch of the season and into the playoffs.
But in the biggest game of the season, Ham turned back to Walker, who delivered on the biggest stage possible, scoring all 15 of his points in the fourth quarter, nearly matching the Golden State Warriors’ total as a team, as the Lakers escaped with a 104-101 victory in Game 4 of their second-round series.
The Lakers would a commanding 3-1 lead over the defending champion Warriors and wound up winning the series in six games.
In Game 4, it was an intense back-and-forth contest with the Warriors doing everything possible to steal a game on the road. Anthony Davis set the tone early for the Lakers with 19 of his 23 points coming in the first half. He also had 15 rebounds and three steals and while he didn’t do much offensively in the second half, his defense, particularly in the final possessions against Warriors star Stephen Curry, was absolutely crucial.
LeBron James led the Lakers with 27 points to go along with 10 rebounds and six assists while Austin Reaves contributed 21 points and four assists, including some huge baskets in the fourth quarter as well.
Things undoubtedly got dicey for the Lakers in the third quarter, falling behind by as many as 12 points. But they continued to show their resilience, battling back from every deficit and continually attacking the Warriors in the paint.
Curry did his best to hold the Lakers down, hurting them in all facets and finishing with a triple-double of 31 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists. But the Lakers made him work as it took him 30 shots to reach his total and he hit just 3-of-14 shots from 3-point range. The Lakers also held Klay Thompson in check as he finished with just nine points on 3-of-11 shooting.
It was not the prettiest of games by either side as both teams had long spells of offensive inefficiency and shot a combined 27.3% from 3-point range. Both teams also struggled with turnovers as the Lakers gave it away 14 times while Golden State committed 16, including the two biggest in the final seconds of the game.
Stephen Curry gifted jersey to Lonnie Walker IV after Lakers beat Warriors
With Walker coming up big in such an important game, it was a testament to the hard work he put in, staying ready for when his number was called by the Lakers.
Even Curry was impressed with Walker’s performance as he gifted the guard a signed jersey after the Lakers beat the Warriors with a hilarious message that read ‘Will never forgive you for Game 4.’
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