The classic LeBron James versus Steph Curry duel never disappoints. For many years, these two future Hall-of-Famers have always went at each other, either in the regular season, All-Star games, or even in the NBA Finals. In recent memory, the Los Angeles Lakers have always had the upper hand against their long-time rivals, especially back in the Anthony Davis era. However, this time around, the visiting Golden State Warriors finally took the dub, 123-116, despite a strong night from LeBron.
Curry Toys With Lakers’ Defense
It’s not unusual for one of the most elite players in history to put up a stellar scoring outing. Just like the great shooter he is, Curry danced around every Laker defender, scoring a total of 37 points including four triples.
Brandin Podziemski also helped pick up the offensive load by finishing with 28 points, 6 assists, and 8 rebounds, as well as an efficient 8-for-10 from three.
Although James played consistently and continuously put his best foot on the game, both Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic struggled for most of the night. LBJ finished with 33 points, 9 assists, and 5 rebounds while Reaves kind of revived his terrible game after recording 31 points, most of which came in the fourth quarter where he shot 10-for-20. Rui Hachimura also played a huge part in picking up the slack by contributing 24 points.
Doncic Receiving a Lot of Backlash After Sluggish Night
Luka wasn’t playing well throughout the game and his performance had the fans inside Crypto.com arena feeling frustrated. Though he got a pretty good all-around game (stat-wise) after chipping in 19 points, 7 assists, and 8 rebounds, some fans believe this is his worst game in the purple and gold so far.
The 26-year-old superstar was looking out of place sometimes, plus he often doesn’t put a lot of effort on the defensive end. Regardless, he’s still a great addition to the Lakers, who has been frantically looking to get back to the Finals.
Lakers vs Warriors in the First Round?
The Lakers (46-30) drop to the fourth seed while the Warriors (45-31) keep their standing as the no.3 seed. If the playoffs begin today, LeBron and Curry would meet again in the postseason for the nth time. This time, the narrative could be different, with both teams having two new faces – Doncic and Butler.
On the other hand, if they lose a few more games, their fans would see these teams plummet to the bottom of playoff contention and probably become a play-in team. Dub nation and Hollywood fans are surely crossing their fingers right now.
Anyway, it’s been going well for both Californian teams. From what seemed like a catastrophic season turned out for the better, both in LA and in San Francisco.
