The Los Angeles Lakers had every reason to feel comfortable heading into the final minutes against the Toronto Raptors. Luka Doncic had delivered another extraordinary performance, and JJ Redick’s team appeared to have the game under control. However, a decision to give the starters an early rest nearly turned a comfortable evening into another frustrating collapse.
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Austin Reaves even found himself in an uncomfortable situation involving a fan and a headband. The Athletic’s Dan Woike reported the rather awkward situation on X,
“The Lakers emptied their bench to close out the game, but the back half of the roster just got waxed. Austin Reaves, who gave his headband to a fan, had to ask for it back to check back into the game.”
The sequence summed up an uneasy finish for Los Angeles. With the Lakers holding a 125-109 advantage and 1:43 remaining, Redick decided to clear the floor and give his regular rotation players some rest. Reaves passed his headband to a fan, seemingly believing his night was over. Luka Doncic was already checked out with 2:28 remaining. But Toronto’s reserves had other plans, and the Lakers suddenly needed their starters again.
Jamison Battle caught fire, connecting on consecutive deep three-pointers. Quentin Grimes then added to the trouble with a careless pass that gave Toronto another opportunity to attack. The situation deteriorated further when Bronny James turned the ball over on an inbound play. Battle capitalized with a driving floater before Jaden Bradley finished a reverse layup.
Suddenly, the Lakers’ once-comfortable cushion had shrunk to just six points. What should have been a routine finish had become a genuine concern for Redick. The Lakers coach had little choice but to abandon his original plan. With 44 seconds remaining, he called a timeout and sent Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler back onto the floor. Redick addressed this after the game.
“I won’t make that mistake again. I’ll leave the guys in. You got to play to the final buzzer.”
There was significant foul trouble too, with Redick even getting a technical foul with 6:27 left in the fourth quarter. Broadcast footage notes that Redick stepped on the court and was arguing missed foul calls with the refs. The head coach even addressed it after the game.
“We scored 131 with 24 turnovers… Some of those turnovers are because we’re like legitimately getting fouled. Like, it’s not like, ‘Was that a foul? Was that not a foul?’…“It’s really hard when you, when you play teams like this that are just fouling every possession. I thought we did enough to play through it, but a lot of those turnovers are just that, and then you can point to some decision-making, some passes, all that stuff.”
AR had to retrieve his headband from the fan before returning to action, making an already awkward situation even more unusual. Fortunately for Los Angeles, the reinforcements immediately made a difference. Walker Kessler, who had been excellent throughout the night, attacked the basket for a dunk to restore some breathing room.
The newly acquired center also grabbed a crucial defensive rebound after Battle missed another three-pointer. Toronto continued to fight. Battle knocked down another three to keep Toronto’s hopes alive, while a late Matisse Thybulle turnover offered the visitors another opportunity. However, Allen Graves couldn’t convert a point-blank layup, effectively ending the comeback attempt.
Luka Doncic added two more free throws, and the Lakers escaped with a 131-125 victory. Before the late drama, the Slovenian superstar had given the home crowd plenty to celebrate. The 27-year-old six-time All-Star finished with 45 points, 15 rebounds, six assists, and five steals while knocking down eight three-pointers. Despite nearly blowing a 16-point lead, the Lakers held on under Doncic. His performance also placed him in an exclusive category in NBA history.
He became the first player ever to record at least 45 points, 15 rebounds, five assists, five steals and five made threes in a single game, as per the NBA. The scoring numbers were just as remarkable. ESPN Insights highlighted that Luka Doncic is averaging 37.7 points per game, the fifth-highest scoring average through a team’s first six games in NBA history. It was also the best such mark since Michael Jordan averaged 37.1 points during the 1986-87 campaign.
The Slovenian had already set the Lakers’ franchise record for points through six games, surpassing his own mark from last season. However, the historic performance was almost overshadowed by a disastrous defensive stretch from the Lakers’ second unit.
The finish was hardly what Redick wanted. Los Angeles had already experienced a painful collapse against Golden State, blowing a 25-point advantage in Friday’s defeat. Allowing another opponent to make a late run, particularly after building such a commanding lead, was far from encouraging. The decision to bring the starters back ultimately saved the night.