The Los Angeles Lakers faced the Dallas Mavericks, who were on a five-game losing streak and missing their two core players, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. Despite this, the Lakers suffered a defeat at the hands of an undermanned Mavericks team, allowing them to end their losing streak. The final 86 seconds of the game turned into garbage time, with LeBron James and others being benched as the Lakers essentially surrendered early. James scored 18 points with 10 rebounds and 8 assists, while Anthony Davis had 21 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks, but their efforts were in vain. For the Mavericks, Washington scored 22 points with 8 rebounds, Clay had 13 points, and Dinwiddie contributed 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists.
In this game, the absence of the East European duo of Doncic and Irving saw Clay leading the team into battle. In the first quarter, both sides engaged in a fierce battle, with James performing an aerial switch and a big loop dunk over LeFevre, igniting everyone's passion. James continued to showcase his skills with a powerful dunk after a successful move, indicating he was in great form. At the end of the first quarter, the Lakers led the Mavericks by 3 points with a score of 27-24. In the second quarter, Grimes and Reeves exchanged three-pointers, with the Lakers' young player Christie also performing well. Davis' performance was average, and the lead changed hands several times. By halftime, the Mavericks had overtaken the Lakers by 5 points.
In the third quarter, with James off the court, the Mavericks went on a scoring spree with consecutive three-pointers, building a 15-point lead that forced the Lakers to call a timeout. Davis tried to close the gap, but by the end of the third quarter, the Lakers were trailing by 13 points. In the fourth quarter, the Lakers' Finney-Smith and Knickert continued to hit three-pointers, but the Mavericks' Clay and Dinwiddie held their ground, expanding their advantage to secure the victory.
The key reason for the Lakers' loss in this game was their failure to contain the Mavericks' three-point shooting. Whether it was the Mavericks hitting four consecutive three-pointers in the third quarter to extend their lead to 15 points or the Lakers' frantic attempts to catch up in the fourth quarter, with Washington and others continuously making three-pointers, the Lakers were always on the back foot. Adding to this were the turnovers by Davis and others in the last four minutes of the game. After James was substituted out, his face turned dark, and ultimately, the Lakers were unable to stage a comeback.
After losing this crucial positioning battle, the Lakers were surpassed by the Mavericks, dropping to sixth place in the Western Conference, which is a great pity.