The Los Angeles Lakers’ offensive machine kicked into an even higher gear Sunday night, producing a career-scoring performance – and it wasn’t from LeBron James or Anthony Davis.
With All-Star guard D’Angelo Russell sidelined by illness, Spencer Dinwiddie stepped into the starting lineup and immediately filled the scoring void. The veteran poured in 26 points on efficient shooting to help fuel LA’s 150-145 victory over the Indiana Pacers in a back-and-forth Crypto.com Arena shootout.
Dinwiddie’s scoring outburst couldn’t have come at a better time for the streaking Lakers. With Russell’s hot hand missing from the lineup, LA needed additional firepower to complement its two franchise cornerstones. Dinwiddie answered the call, finally looking like the proven scorer he was in Brooklyn after a trying first few months with his new team.
“Don’t get it twisted, I love the sexy stats. I love scoring,” Dinwiddie said after the win. “But you know what, it’s part of being in a team environment…I understood that when I signed here. I look forward to being a piece as we go forward.”
While he provided the surprise scoring punch, the Lakers’ two biggest stars were their usual prolific selves. LeBron James recorded yet another effortless 26-point, 10-assist performance while Anthony Davis overwhelmed Indiana’s frontcourt with 36 points and 16 rebounds.
On most nights, that type of dominance from LA’s dynamic duo would be enough to dispatch virtually any opponent. But the Lakers’ nemesis on this night was their own leaky defense, which allowed the Pacers to bomb away from three and hang around deep into the fourth quarter despite facing deficits as large as 19 points.
“We allowed them to score 145, so it was terrible defensively,” Davis lamented postgame. “They hit some shots toward the end but we can do what we want offensively, as you could see tonight. But we’ve got to defend.”
That defensive inconsistency has plagued the Lakers all season, even as their offensive potency has steadily improved since the Russell acquisition at the trade deadline.
The challenge is sustaining that type of rhythm on both ends over a full 48 minutes. When the Lakers let up defensively, as they did in allowing 46 fourth-quarter points to the Pacers, even a Herculean 150-point outburst was barely enough to escape with a victory.
“We don’t need to give them life,” Davis said of letting Indiana back into the game. “But at this point in the season, a win is a win.”
Fortunately for the Lakers, their newfound scoring prowess overwhelmed the Pacers’ spirited comeback bid. With Dinwiddie and Russell set to return, plus James and Davis firmly anchoring the assault, LA’s juggernaut attack may start rendering defensive lapses irrelevant if they maintain this pace.
The 39-32 Lakers can’t afford many missteps down the stretch as they try to climb into the Western playoff picture. But if Sunday’s performance was any indication, outscoring opponents into submission may become their path of least resistance.
