Lakers lose to Thunder, fall out of NBA Cup contention

30.11.2024 09:17

DailyNews.com

Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht, right, attempts a dunk as Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein defends during the first half of their NBA Cup game on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

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LOS ANGELES — The Lakers entered Friday knowing the results of their home game against the Oklahoma City Thunder wouldn’t guarantee anything when it came to their hopes to contend for a second consecutive NBA Cup.

But Friday night’s result, a 101-93 Thunder victory for the Lakers’ fourth loss in the last five games following a six-game winning streak, sealed the Lakers’ fate.

“We have a lot to build on defensively over the last two games,” Coach JJ Redick said. “That was as connected as our group has been on that end of the floor since the first game of the season. Really outstanding job with a lot of the stuff we talked about. But there were a half-dozen to a dozen plays that just shot us in the foot even before the late-game stuff.”

With the defeat, the Lakers dropped to 11-8 on the season and 2-2 in Cup matchups in their four Group Play games, essentially eliminating them from contention for a spot in the quarterfinals.

The lone wild card spot in the Western Conference will very likely be a team that goes 3-1 (Oklahoma City, Phoenix, San Antonio, Dallas or Portland). Even in the extremely unlikely scenario where a slew of teams end up tied at 2-2, the Lakers would lose out on point differential (-24).

Rookie wing Dalton Knecht scored a team-high 20 points (6 for 12 from 3-point range) to go with six rebounds and four assists.

Anthony Davis finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and four blocked shots, but he only had 10 field goal attempts (making five) to go with 5-of-7 shooting from the free-throw line.

“Every time we put the ball in the post they had one guy at the elbow and they were doubling from the baseline as well,” LeBron James said of Davis. “We all got to do a better job of trying to keep him involved offensively because we know what it does for our offense. It was one of those games where I don’t think anybody was much in a rhythm besides Dalton.”

D’Angelo Russell added 17 points, nine rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals off the bench.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a pull-up 3-pointer over Max Christie’s outstretched right arm to put the Thunder ahead 95-91 with 1:35 remaining.

James (12 points, eight rebounds, six assists but five turnovers) tried responding with his own 3-pointer but missed.

Gilgeous-Alexander missed a pull-up 3-point attempt on the Thunder’s ensuing possession, with James then assisting Christie on a turnaround jumper with 40 seconds left that cut the Lakers’ deficit to 95-93.

Not knowing the Lakers didn’t have a foul to give late, Christie intentionally fouled Gilgeous-Alexander, who knocked down a pair of free throws with 22 seconds left to give the Thunder a 97-93 advantage.

“It was a misinterpretation on my part,” Christie said. “But regardless, I think I should have … I knew the time and score of the game, but I didn’t realize they were in the bonus. And I should have known because they were in the bonus for the last three or four minutes. That’s a mental error on my part, and I take responsibility for that.”

Austin Reaves (11 points on 3-of-11 shooting) turned the ball over on the Lakers’ ensuing possession, leading to a Jalen Williams (19 points) dunk to seal the win for the Thunder (15-4; 2-1 in Cup Play).

Reaves took a hard fall after getting fouled by Gilgeous-Alexander late in the second quarter.

He laid on the court for a few minutes before walking back to the bench under his own power, knocking down a pair of free throws after the stoppage.

He tried to stay in the game but asked to be subbed out a minute later, heading directly to the team’s locker room and not coming out with the rest of the team after halftime before rejoining the team midway through the third.

“Clear that he couldn’t go in the first half,” Redick said of Reaves. “He’s tough as nails. I thought he moved fine. It wasn’t really in the flow of the game because it’s bad and not getting to start the second half. He’ll be in some pain [on Saturday], and we’ll just have to assess going forward.”

Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 36 points (15 in the fourth quarter), nine assists and six rebounds. It was the fifth time in the past six games that Gilgeous-Alexander has scored at least 30.

The Lakers begin a four-game road trip when they face the Utah Jazz on Sunday at 5 p.m. PT. The trip includes games against Minnesota, Miami and Atlanta.