The Golden State Warriors hosted the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night in the final regular season game at the Chase Center … and likely the final game there, period, until the WNBA season starts. Both teams had rosters missing loads of star talent — notably Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler III for the Warriors, and Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves for the Lakers.
But that did not equalize things. Because the Lakers still had something the Warriors did not: LeBron Freaking James (yes that is his government
name), the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and one of the world’s foremost age-defying humans.
And that was the difference in the game.
It was the difference from the opening tip, when the Warriors offense — which was without not just Curry and Butler, but also Kristaps Porziņģis, Quinten Post, Al Horford, Moses Moody, Gui Santos, and Will Richard — could find no flow whatsoever, while James played masterfully and the Lakers jumped out to a 7-2 lead.
Eventually the Warriors started to find a few buckets thanks to Pat Spencer, but there was no rhythm or flow, and they missed their first six three-point shots, before LJ Cryer mercifully made one late in the quarter. The Dubs were also getting cooked by Deandre Ayton, who was punishing them inside. The defense eventually tightened up late in the quarter, in large part due to some nice minutes from Charles Bassey, playing in his third game with the team. Behind that defense, they were able to make the game close, though LeBron ended the quarter with a three, giving him 12 points, and handing Los Angeles a 28-23 lead after the first.
It was the start of the second quarter where the Warriors looked their best. The defense jumped all over the Lakers from the start of the quarter, and turned defense into offense. Here’s the sequence that started the frame:
Seth Curry layup
Drew Timme turnover (De’Anthony Melton steal)
Gary Payton II layup
Jake LaRavia turnover (Draymond Green steal)
Seth Curry technical free throw
Seth Curry jumper
LeBron James turnover (De’Anthony Melton steal)
Gary Payton II layup
The Dubs had scored on four consecutive possessions, and the Lakers hadn’t even attempted a shot yet, while JJ Redick needed a timeout after the 9-0 run handed the lead to Golden State for the first time all night.
But Redick tightened up the Lakers offense, and with the Warriors no longer forcing turnovers, they proved incapable of creating good shots. Now they were just settling for ugly looks, and they were slipping as a result. The Lakers quickly retook the lead, and were threatening to run away with the game, though they only trailed 53-49 at the half.
For as good as the start of the second quarter was, the start of the third quarter was just as bad. It was so bad, in fact, that Kerr called a timeout just 59 seconds into the frame, after sloppy offense and bad defense resulted in the Dubs trailing by nine points.
The Lakers pushed it to double digits, and the game just kind of hung there for a while. The Warriors weren’t playing well, and the Lakers, while in control, weren’t playing well enough to turn a lead into a rout. But they certainly flirted with it, as the Lakers pushed the lead up to 15 points, and threatened to fully run away with the game.
The Warriors had an answer, though, late in the third. More specifically, Malevy Leons had an answer, as he scored six unanswered points in a span of 25 seconds to end the frame. The Warriors trailed 82-73 entering the fourth quarter: they were within striking distance, if not close.
But LeBron apparently took that personally, and started the fourth quarter like it was 2007. James drove by every for a layup to open the quarter, then Spencer threw the ball away. Following a Lakers turnover, Seth Curry missed a three, and James whipped a gorgeous pass to LaRavia for a dunk. Nate Williams missed a shot, and LeBron grabbed the rebound, went the length of the court, and scored in a matter of seconds. Kerr called timeout, play resumed, Bassey turned the ball over, and five seconds later James was floating through the air, pausing physics for a brief second before hammering home a truly violent dunk.
It was an 8-0 run, and any visions the Warriors had of getting back into the game were immediately deleted. LeBron had single-handedly made sure that Golden State would have no hope the rest of the game. The Lakers ran the lead up to 27 points, before the garbage time minutes equalized things ever so slightly, with Los Angeles winning 119-103.
James dominated, with 26 points, eight rebounds, and 11 assists in less than 32 minutes of action, while Ayton controlled the paint, shooting 9-for-11 en route to 21 points. The Warriors leading scorers were Williams and Brandin Podziemski, who each had 17, but neither scored efficiently. Bassey impressively had another double-double off the bench, with 12 points, 13 rebounds, and two blocked shots. He’s playing tremendous basketball.
Unfortunately, the Warriors suffered another injury in the loss, as Cryer went down with a lower-body injury late in the game, and had to be helped off the court. It appeared to be an ankle injury.
Golden State now will head up the road for a back-to-back, as they visit the Sacramento Kings on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. PT. The team is openly treating it like a dress rehearsal for the win-or-go-home play-in tournament, and they’re hopeful that Curry, Porziņģis, and Horford will all play.
