They met two days before Sunday night's clash at the Crypto.com Arena, consisting of two games between Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies, which resemble a playoff series.
The Lakers won Game 1 Friday evening and knew the Grizzlies were going to put in more work and effort even with star guard Ja Morant (right calf contusion) out.
And so it was: the Lakers trailed by 16 points in the second quarter, and the Grizzlies significantly increased that lead. But with Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Jake LaRavia leading the way, the Lakers pulled away. victory with a score of 120-114.
Doncic nearly had a triple-double with 36 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. James had 26 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. LaRavia, who started in Rui Hachimura's absence, had 26 points, five rebounds and four assists. It was the second straight time LaRavia, who averaged 9.1 points, scored 20-plus points.
The game alternated between leads in the fourth quarter, with the Lakers and Grizzlies taking turns in tight spots. The Lakers finally took the lead for good, 100-99, on Doncic's basket.
James then hit a 3-pointer and made one of two free throws for a 104-99 lead with 3 minutes, 49 seconds left.
Lakers (22-11) had an answer for every Grizzlies counterattack, and the final imprint of the game was Doncic's back-to-back 3-pointers for a nine-point lead with 2:01 left.
The NBA's planning for the Lakers to host the Grizzlies on Friday and Sunday was not a problem for coach JJ Redick.
“I love it,” Redick said. “I think it really echoes [the playoffs] in a sense. A playoff series, especially when it's not a home-and-away game and most of you are playing a two-game series on someone's home court during the day. There were several of these last year. So, I love it for our team and it's a good opportunity for growth. When we win, we realize that there are many things we can get better at and things we can improve on. This is a big challenge for me.”
For Redick, it meant what it always meant for the Lakers: improved defense.
Redick wanted his team to get back on defense faster and prevent the Grizzlies (15-20) from getting as many early offensive opportunities.
LeBron James scores on the Grizzlies' Christian Koloko in the first quarter Sunday.
(Kathleen Mulcahy/Getty Images)
The Lakers also wanted to return center Deandre Ayton to the starting lineup after a five-game hiatus.
Ayton scored just four points on 2-for-4 shooting against the Grizzlies on Friday night and didn't score more than 12 points in that span.
So the Lakers turned to Ayton early on, trying to spark his game. It worked to a certain extent: Ayton scored 15 points, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked three shots.
