After an undefeated run in NBA Cup group play, the Los Angeles Lakers are out to continue their success with a home game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday.
The Lakers carry an overall six-game winning streak into the game, with the last four victories coming with LeBron James finally on the floor. James did not start his NBA-record 23rd season until Nov. 18 when he returned from a sciatica condition.
James now is the one who has to blend in with the Lakers’ dynamic duo of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. Doncic collected 35 points and 11 assists against his former team when Los Angeles earned a 129-119 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday.
Reaves led the Lakers with 38 points on 12-of-15 shooting from the floor, including 6 of 8 from 3-point range. James continued to ease into the flow with 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting with seven assists.
“I finally made the 3s, so that was nice,” Reaves said. “Luka draws so much attention, Bron’s obviously Bron, and they are (both) gonna get the majority of attention. I kind of run around out there and find open spots and make shots, hopefully big shots.”
While Reaves discussed taking what he can get on one side of the room, James was talking about blending in on the other.
“Those guys (Doncic and Reaves) have so many eyes on them and obviously they are our primary ball handlers,” James said. “They play a lot of our pick-and-roll offense. A lot of times (defenses) put two (defenders) on the ball and it’s a numbers game for us.”
The Lakers’ win streak started with a 118-104 victory at New Orleans on Nov. 14 without James. Reaves scored 31 points and Doncic had 24 with 12 assists. Trey Murphy III scored 35 points for the Pelicans, while rookie Jeremiah Fears had 19.
New Orleans enters off a 104-96 road loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday and now has to find its legs one day later against a confident team in Los Angeles.
Zion Williamson scored 25 points against the Warriors, while Saddiq Bey added 21 as the Pelicans lost for the 11th time in their past 12 games. New Orleans, which has just three wins, ended a nine-game losing streak with a 143-130 home victory over the Chicago Bulls on Monday.
Williamson has played in five of the past six games after he missed two weeks with a hamstring strain. He was 8-of-16 shooting with seven rebounds and four assists against the Warriors.
While wins remain hard to come by, Williamson’s return has provided optimism. The Pelicans led by as many as 10 points early in the second quarter Saturday and were up 88-87 with 4:02 remaining before the Warriors went on a decisive 12-0 run.
“I feel a confidence brewing with the group,” interim head coach James Borrego said this week. “… We don’t care where the production comes from. It can come from anybody on any given night, but I see a lot of guys playing well. The ball is moving, our pace is up.”
