The Lakers faced off against the Wizards at home, with the Lakers starting lineup consisting of Reeves, Christie, Hachimura, James, and Davis; while the Wizards started with Carrington, Poole, Culver, Kuzma, and Sar.
In the first quarter, the Wizards surprisingly took the lead as visitors. After Poole scored a three-pointer and completed a 2+1 play, Davis responded with a three-pointer and a mid-range shot, allowing the Lakers to take the lead. Kuzma also scored consecutively, and the two teams exchanged points, entering a timeout with a score of 12-13. Returning to the game, Davis sent a big block on defense, and Smith hit a three-pointer, prompting the Wizards to call a timeout with a score of 15-18. After the timeout, Smith hit another three-pointer, and the Wizards responded with a three-pointer. Davis and Hayes took turns dunking, and after James scored on a breakthrough, the Lakers extended their lead. However, the Wizards quickly responded with a 5-0 run to stop the bleeding. Reeves was fouled on a buzzer-beating three-pointer, but the Wizards successfully challenged the call, ending the first quarter with the Lakers leading 29-23 by six points.
In the second quarter, during the rotation phase, James came in and immediately hit a three-pointer, then assisted Reeves in hitting another three-pointer. However, the Wizards quickly responded with a small scoring spree, with Kuzma hitting a three-pointer to close the gap to 33-36, only three points behind, forcing the Lakers to call a timeout. Returning to the game, James led a 9-2 scoring run to re-establish the lead, but Culver's 2+1 play was unsuccessful. The two teams then engaged in a tough tug-of-war, with the score seesawing. After Poole hit a three-pointer, Davis responded with a 2+1 fast break and an alley-oop connection with James. Smith hit his third three-pointer, helping the Lakers extend their lead. Sar and Poole combined for five points to stop the bleeding, and the half ended with the Wizards trailing 49-59 by ten points.
In the second half, the third quarter saw Davis and James both perform well inside and outside, while Kuzma continued to score. However, the Lakers went on a 9-4 scoring run to take a 15-point lead, prompting the Wizards to call a timeout. The timeout proved ineffective as Davis blocked a shot under the basket, James scored on a fast break layup, and Christie hit another three-pointer, pushing the lead towards 20 points. Both teams then had successful alley-oops, with Sar and Davis engaging in a scoring duel. The Wizards managed to reduce the deficit to 14 points, but Hayes also scored a 2+1 play. Despite Culver's efforts to close the gap with a 2+1 play, the Wizards were able to reduce the deficit to single digits. Vincent hit a three-pointer to stop the bleeding, and the third quarter ended with the Lakers still leading 89-77 by 12 points.
In the early stages of the fourth quarter, James continued to lead the team effectively, assisting his teammates with consecutive passes. The Lakers went on an 8-3 scoring run to extend their lead to 17 points, forcing the Wizards to call another timeout. After the timeout, the Wizards hit back-to-back three-pointers to close the gap, but Reeves made a foul shot to stop the bleeding, and Davis scored on a putback to maintain a 17-point lead. James grabbed a rebound to achieve a triple-double, and the Lakers called a timeout to replace him. After the other starters played for a while, they were replaced by substitutes, and the game entered garbage time.
Ultimately, the Lakers secured a decisive 111-88 victory over the Wizards at home. Let's take a look at the specific performances of the players!
James, at 40 years old, had a great game against a weaker opponent, even completing a 2+1 dunk over Valan in the second quarter. In the first half, he shot 6 out of 10 from the field, 1 out of 4 from beyond the arc, and 1 out of 1 from the free-throw line, accumulating 14 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.
In the third quarter, James did not exert himself much, scoring only 7 points with 2 rebounds and 1 assist. In the early part of the fourth quarter, he led the team effectively, finishing the game with 21 points, 10 rebounds, 13 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block in 36 minutes of play.
With today's two steals, James' career total of 2309 steals surpasses Pippen's 2307, securing him the seventh place in history! He will now pursue Maurice Cheeks (2310).
Davis also had a dominant performance, exploding against the Wizards. In the first quarter, he shot 4 out of 7, including 1 out of 2 from three-point range, scoring 9 points with 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks.
In the first half, Davis shot 9 out of 13 from the field, including 1 out of 2 from three-point range, and 0 out of 1 from the free-throw line, accumulating 19 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks, with a +14 plus-minus rating.
In the second half, he maintained his offensive firepower, scoring another 8 points with 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 blocks in the third quarter, performing well on both offense and defense.
In this game, Davis played 32 minutes, shooting 14 out of 22 from the field, including 1 out of 3 from three-point range, and scored an impressive 29 points, 16 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, and 4 blocks.
Facing his former team, the Lakers, Kuzma had a disappointing performance. In the first half, he contributed 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists, but in the third quarter, he scored only 4 points, and in the early part of the fourth quarter, he made two careless turnovers.
In the entire game, Kuzma played for minutes, shooting out of the field, out of three-point range, and out of the free-throw line, scoring only points, rebounds, and assists.
In addition to James and Davis, the Lakers' bench also produced a surprise player—Finney-Smith.
In the first half, he was solid on defense and had a hot hand from beyond the arc, making all three of his three-point attempts to contribute 9 points and 1 rebound, with a +4 plus-minus rating.
In the entire game, Smith played 22 minutes, shooting 6 out of 8 from the field, including 4 out of 6 from three-point range, scoring 16 points and grabbing 2 rebounds.