With Anthony Davis out, LeBron James and Max Christie lead Lakers past Portland
The big picture demanded that the Lakers be smart; the small picture demanded the Lakers play a little tougher Thursday night.
Anthony Davis, who missed most of the Lakers’ game on Christmas, needed the night off because of lingering soreness in his sprained left ankle. Gabe Vincent needed more time to recover from an oblique strain.
Removing key pieces, especially one as critical as Davis, highlighted something JJ Redick’s onetime coach Doc Rivers used to say: winning any game in the NBA is hard.
The Lakers were going to need a big night from someone they rely on and a career night from someone they’re truly starting to.
The Lakers put their faith in Austin Reaves when they traded D’Angelo Russell, trusting the young shooter to help LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
LeBron James and Max Christie combined to score 66 points, Christie finishing with a career-best 28, in the Lakers’ 114-106 win over the Trail Blazers.
“Tonight was a career night for me,” Christie said, “so this is something that I want to hang on to and try to replicate as much as possible.”
James made a season-high seven three-pointers, needing only 10 attempts, on his way to 38 points as the Lakers (19-14) fought through a rocky fourth quarter. And Christie, cementing his place as the team’s shooting guard, hit five threes and aggressively cut off the ball with the Portland defense focused on James and Austin Reaves.
“He’s putting in the work and it’s paying off for him and [we] got coaches who believe in him,” James said of Christie. “We believe in him, and he was spectacular tonight on both ends of the floor.”
James turned 40 this week. Christie won’t turn 22 until February. On a night like Thursday with Davis resting, the Lakers needed James to have a big game.
“AD’s our No.1, No. 2 option,” James said. “And so when he’s out, we all have to step up our game, including myself.”
James’ 38-point game tied him with Michael Jordan for most 30-point games in NBA history. It was also the third-most points ever scored by a player after turning 40 (behind two Jordan games). James was also the second-oldest player ever to make seven threes in a game (Vince Carter did that when he was 42).
“We want him aggressive, shot-ready for three just as much as we want him aggressive to get downhill and put pressure on the rim,” Redick said of James. “He’s just fantastic. ... A couple of possessions that seemed like they were dead possessions and he just bailed us out. Just another 38-point game for LeBron.”
The Lakers were less ho-hum about Christie’s career night. Redick said Christie’s defensive demeanor was off early on, and a couple of missed mid-range jumpers had him ready to “wring his neck.”
But, in what has been common since the Lakers put him in the starting lineup Dec. 8, Christie overcame the adversity and learned from it. He made five threes, a career high, but it was a shift on defense that really helped him find a rhythm, Redick said.
“You have to learn how to be a pro. And by that I mean you have to learn how to do the same things every night to the point where you’re reliable and the coach can’t take you off the court,” Redick said. “And that’s where the growth I’ve seen from Max over the last six to eight weeks [has been].”
For much of the night, if it wasn’t James or Christie scoring, no one was.
The pair shot the Lakers into a 15-point lead against one of the West’s worst teams, the Lakers’ defense finding its footing in the second and third quarters.
But the Trail Blazers’ younger, more athletic legs and their longer, stronger arms put the Lakers in tough spots.
Reaves, for the first time since the Lakers fully gave him the keys, got pressured into shooting just five for 15 from the field. He still managed to finish with 11 assists, eight rebounds and 15 points.
Anfernee Simons led Portland (11-22) with 23 points.
The Lakers host Atlanta on Friday night before playing key road games against Houston and Dallas, two teams currently ahead of them in the Western Conference.
The Lakers put their faith in Austin Reaves when they traded D’Angelo Russell, trusting the young shooter to help LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
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