The Lakers called a timeout with 9:35 left in the fourth quarter Sunday in an attempt to slow down a Miami Heat team that had cut the Lakers' once 18-point lead to three points. Outside the timeout, the ball was in his hands and not Luka Doncic or Austin Reevesbut Jake LaRavia.
LaRavia had to make a move at a pretty big moment, and he did so decisively, dunking with his left hand over center Kel'el Ware for a 7-0 score.
Until the end of the match, the Lakers' lead never dropped below four points.
“I have no idea,” LaRavia said when asked how he was able to dunk over a taller defender. “I think it was the first time in a long time that I dunked the ball left-handed, and I just saw an open lane. I was aggressively attacking him, and he kind of jumped a little late. So, I came up to dunk the ball for the first time because I was just trying to put it away.”
It was another night where LaRavia, who had 25 points, eight rebounds and four steals, was aggressive for the Lakers, playing a prominent role in the Lakers' game. victory with a score of 130-120 It's a hot Sunday night at the Crypto.com Arena.
LaRavia has been on tears in his last three games.
He had 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting and five rebounds at Memphis last Friday night and 27 points on 10-for-11 shooting, including shooting 5-for-6 from 3-point range last Wednesday night at Minnesota.
“Yeah, I just scored a lot of points recently,” LaRavia said. “I make a lot of shots, like at the end of the day. In the game against Minnesota, I missed one shot. In that game, I missed three shots, so obviously when I play shooting the ball at 80% or better, I'm going to make a lot of shots. But again, I preach this every time I talk to the media, it's very easy to play with Luka and AR. A lot of my buckets are running past the defense in transition, just running harder than the other team and getting those dunks.” or layups, and then just shoot threes when I get them.”
Even if fans don't know his name, they are starting to recognize LaRavia for his scoring exploits.
During the Minnesota game, fans shouted, “Who's number 12?”
This is LaRavia's number.
“I kind of put my hands up and kind of agreed with them: 'Who's number 12?' I kind of played with it a little bit,” LaRavia said. “I find things like that funny because I'm not well known at the moment, so I just keep my head down and work hard. That's all I do.”
Well, during Sunday's game, Lakers fans joked, “Who's number 12?”
“I heard it about three times,” he said. “I think it's good. Thanks to Anthony Edwards from Minnesota for letting this clip go viral. Yeah, I think it's good. I think it's funny.”
He will be played by Jackson Hayes.
Jackson Hayes and Jake LaRavia share moments in the second half Sunday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
Jackson Hayes walked into the stands after the game wearing the Dodgers jersey he received with his name and No. 11 on the back for throwing the first pitch of the game.
Hayes talked about how excited he was after the Dodgers won the World Series over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday night.
“I used to be a Reds fan, but then they stopped me from throwing the first pitch several times, so now I’m a Dodgers fan,” Hayes said. “And then, yeah, I was excited. That game was crazy. I didn't really get into baseball until I moved here, and now I watch a lot of Dodgers games. It was wild.”
Hayes started at center for the Lakers against the Heat because Deandre Ayton was sidelined with back spasms.
Hayes was on his game, catching passes for dunks and running the court hard, scoring 15 points and grabbing five rebounds. He made all seven of his shots.
“My guards look at me well,” Hayes said. “I just do the same thing every night. It just depends on how the defense works. Sometimes they might just hit me in the pocket and I'll end up in the corner. Other nights it might be me getting dunks. Other nights, it's the defender coming out of the break. So, I mean, the guards just get me going.”
Hayes even made a three-pointer, his first of the season.
Bronny James plays big minutes
Bronny James dunks in the first half against Miami on Sunday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
Bronny James played nearly seven minutes in the fourth quarter, a sign of Lakers coach JJ Redick's faith in his sophomore guard.
Overall, James played just over 11 minutes, scoring just two points but making three steals.
“I thought he was a really good ballhandler,” Redick said. “He intercepted the ball, but I thought he handled the ball really well.”
James' basket came off a pass from Reeves on a fast break, a dunk that brought the crowd to its feet and his teammates jumping off the bench, including his father LeBron James, who still suffers from sciatica.
