LeBron carries Lakers to massive 21-point fourth-place win over Clippers
LOS ANGELES (AP) - LeBron James scored 19 of his 34 points in a brilliant fourth quarter, bringing the Los Angeles Lakers back from a 21-point deficit for a dramatic 116-112 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.
Kawhi Leonard missed a 12-footer with five seconds left, and James threw a long pass to Cam Reddish for a dunk that punctuated a superb Lakers victory in the rivals' final regular-season game as co-tenants of their downtown arena.
"It's just a feeling when you feel like everything you put in comes into play," James said. "I just stayed consistent. I wasn't taking ill-advised shots. I stayed with the offense. My teammates did a great job of continuing to find me, and I just tried to dictate the tempo, dictate the play. ... It's just a zone. I can't really describe it. I wish you could stay there forever.
Leonard scored 26 points and James Harden had 23 points and nine assists for the Clippers, who lost consecutive games for the first time since December 23 after committing seven turnovers and allowing 39 points in that calamitous fourth quarter. The Clippers played without All-Star Paul George, who missed his second consecutive game with a sore left knee, and without starting center Ivica Zubac, who was ill.
"It's a game," said Clippers coach Tyronn Lue. "I played well for three quarters. I didn't finish the game. I never let a loss or a bad loss hurt what we did and what we built. It was a tough loss because we led by 21 points, but they're a good team, and when you don't take care of the basketball and do what you're supposed to do, you lose.
The Clippers led 98-77 from the opening minute of the fourth quarter, but James led a 29-8 run in just 7:34. Anthony Davis' free throws tied it at 106 with four minutes to play, and James found Rui Hachimura for a go-ahead 3-pointer moments later.
D'Angelo Russell's 3-pointer gave the Lakers a 114-108 lead with 1:12 to play before Harden and Leonard scored on drives to the hoop while James missed two shots for the Lakers. But Leonard's final shot was off target, and James found Reddish to capper it, much to the delight of the thousands of Lakers fans present at a "road" game.
"How can you be surprised by some of the things he does?" Russell asked about James. "A lot of guys stepped up defensively and gave us what we needed, but he's one of the main reasons we won this game, simply because he's him. As a group, we fought.
The Lakers have won three out of four against the Clippers this season, taking the season series for the first time since 2011-12.
Davis had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, while Russell had 18 and Hachimura added 17.
The Clippers and Lakers moved into the building long known as Staples Center - along with the NHL's Los Angeles Kings - when it opened in 1999. The NBA franchises shared their home for the next 25 years, usually playing each other four times a year in a rivalry. known as the Hallway Series because their locker rooms are spaced about 100 feet apart in the same hallway.
The era ends this fall when the Clippers move into Intuit Dome, owner Steve Ballmer's lavish new arena in Inglewood. Ballmer decided that the Clippers needed their own home to complete their move out of the shadow of the Lakers' 17 NBA championships and accompanying banners on the walls of the shared arena, and the billionaire quickly succeeded.
The balance of power in Los Angeles is still completely in the Lakers' favor, but the Clippers have made progress: they have finished with a better record than the Lakers in 10 of the last 11 seasons, failing only in 2020 when the Lakers won. their 17th title.
The teams could still meet in a playoff series this spring, but that never happened.
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