Lakers looking to cool off Luka Doncic, Mavericks

Coming off a 50-point efficiency on Friday, Luka Doncic leads the Dallas Mavericks right into a Christmas Day showcase on Sunday towards the visiting Los Angeles Lakers.

Doncic’s eruption in a 112-106 win over the Houston Rockets additionally included 10 assists, eight rebounds and three steals. His was the ninth 50-plus-point recreation of this NBA season, placing Doncic in a membership that features Lakers large man Anthony Davis.

Davis scored 55 factors in a Dec. 4 win over Washington, a part of a stretch from Nov. 13 via Dec. 13 through which he scored at the least 30 factors 9 instances in 13 video games.

Davis has not appeared since taking part in simply 17:27 in and lacking the second half of the Lakers’ Dec. 16 win over Western Conference-leading Denver, nonetheless. On Friday, the group issued a press release that Davis sustained a stress damage to his proper foot that can sideline him indefinitely.

Without Davis — who’s averaging team-highs of 27.4 factors, 12.1 rebounds and a pair of.1 blocked photographs per recreation — Thomas Bryant moved into the Lakers’ beginning rotation. Bryant scored 21 factors within the win over Denver and comes into Dallas having grabbed at the least 10 rebounds in three of Los Angeles’ final 4 video games.

Bryant’s streak of video games with double-digit factors ended at 4 in Friday’s 134-130 loss to Charlotte, which sends the Lakers limping into Sunday’s matchup on a three-game dropping streak. This is Los Angeles’ fourth skid of at the least three video games this season because the Lakers slipped six video games under .500.

“(We) had our chances tonight,” LeBron James instructed reporters on Friday following his 34-point, eight-assist night time. “I’m not disappointed in our effort. I’m not disappointed in our guys. Just, you want to be out there and be able to win the game that’s right there for you.”

Dallas, in the meantime, moved above .500 on the season with Friday’s win, which was the Mavericks’ second straight.

The Dallas protection — ranked within the higher echelon of the NBA at 109.4 factors per recreation — is available in holding 4 of its final six opponents to 106 factors or fewer. The Mavericks are simply 3-3 in that stretch, nonetheless.

Dallas seeks offensive consistency to help Doncic, whose 32.8-point scoring common trails solely Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid. No different Maverick is averaging greater than Christian Wood’s 16.9 factors per recreation, and Dallas as a staff ranks final within the NBA for field-goal makes an attempt per recreation at 83.1.

In Doncic’s 50-point effort at Houston, the remainder of the Mavericks shot 19-of-50 from the ground. Despite this, Doncic praised his teammate’s shot-making.

“They doubled me a couple of times, I passed the ball and then we made great shots out of it,” he mentioned throughout his postgame media availability. “Make or miss, I will do it again.”

Dallas was with out contributors Dorian Finney-Smith (adductor), Josh Green (elbow) and Maxi Kleber (hamstring) on Friday, in addition to Kemba Walker (scheduled relaxation on the conclusion of the Mavericks’ five-game highway journey).

-Reuters