Los Angeles Lakers beat the San Antonio Spurs 125-109 Monday night at Crypto Arena without All-Star LeBron James, who missed his fifth straight game due to a groin injury.
Young guard Austin Reaves stepped up big with 30 points and Slovenian superstar Luka Doncic added 21 points, 14 assists and nine rebounds.
Dorian Finney-Smith added 15 points while hitting four 3-pointers for the Lakers, who extended their home winning streak to eight games with back-to-back victories over the Phoenix Suns and San Antonio following four consecutive losses on the road.
LeBron’s not impressed with a Bronny 3-pointer
LeBron James watched the Lakers game from the bench and the Los Angeles superstar cheered his teammates during the whole game, although there was a particular gesture he made after one of Bronny James tough shots that caught the attention of fans and media.
The Lakers rookie – who’s LeBron`s oldest son – hit a tough 3-pointer over young forward Julian Champagnie, and the Lakers bench erupted with joy after seeing one of their teammates nailing the shot. However, LeBron didn’t even get up from his chair and kept his arms crossed, looking very unimpressed.
Things were different, though, when Austin Reaves hit a tough shot over veteran center Bismack Biyombo. LeBron couldn’t hold his excitement as he got up from his chair and stepped on the court with some small jumps of joy, as he let Reaves know that he loved that jumper.
The Spurs continue to struggle
Rookie guard Stephon Castle had 23 points and Devin Vassell scored 15 of his 17 in the first half for the San Antonio Spurs, who have lost five of seven as they continue to struggle without their superstar center Victor Wembanyama, who’s out for the season after being diagnosed with a blood clot in his right shoulder.
There was a small altercation when Jarred Vanderbilt shoved San Antonio’s Jeremy Sochan in the chest after Sochan threw the ball at Vanderbilt following a foul with 6:27 to play. Both reserves were ejected.
Defense was a problem for the Spurs for the third game since superstar guard De’Aaron Fox was shut down for the season. The Lakers made 48.9% of their shots, including 19 3-pointers. The Spurs host the Knicks on Wednesday, and the Lakers host the Nuggets.
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