CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Anthony Davis and the Lakers may be starting to find their rhythm — as the uncertainty of the NBA trade deadline draws closer.
Davis had 26 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists for the third triple-double of his career and Los Angeles beat the shorthanded Charlotte Hornets 124-118 on Monday night for its third straight win.
D’Angelo Russell scored 28 points and LeBron James added 26 points for the Lakers (27-25), who finished their road trip 4-2 to build some much-needed momentum.
“When we’re determined, we can beat any team in this league,” Davis said. “We lost two we thought we should have won, and we won two that the people of Nevada thought we should have lost. When we buckle down defensively and play the right way, we’re a tough team to beat.”
Whether the Lakers will be the same team when they return to the floor Thursday night after the NBA trade deadline remains uncertain as rumors continue to swirl about the reigning in-season tournament champion.
When asked if the Lakers have the right personnel in the locker room to win an NBA title, James responded, “It’s not a question for me. I like what we have in the locker room and that’s all I’m worried about. It’s not, ‘I can’t stand you.’ “I don’t get caught up in that.”
Miles Bridges scored a career-high 41 points and rookie Brandon Miller scored 33 points with five 3-pointers for the Hornets, who suffered their eighth consecutive loss since trading Terry Rozier to Miami.
Miller, who had a career-high 35 points in Sunday night’s loss to the Indiana Pacers, became the first Hornets rookie to score at least 30 points in consecutive games.
Miller said, “I think it shows a lot of confidence. Hats off to my teammates for giving me the confidence to come in every day and take the shots that I take in such tough matchups with the rush.” It’s actually all my mates, not just me. If it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t have taken those shots.”
The Lakers shot 64% from the floor in the first half and took a 74-58 lead into the locker room with Russell having 22 points and James having 17 points.
James had several highlight reel moments in the opening half, outrunning PJ Washington and dunking over 7-foot center Nick Richards for a three-point play. James had another baseline drive for a high-flying two-handed jam and also fed Davis for an alley-oop dunk.
The Lakers had 36 assists.
Davis was too tall for the Hornets to handle and with center Mark Williams still out with a back injury, Davis was difficult to stop.
Lakers coach Darwin Hamm said of the double teams Davis has faced and defeated, “He’s seen almost everything.” Where he needs people so that he can read correctly. He’s doing all the homework he needs to do, and that’s why you see the best results.”
Los Angeles increased its lead to 21 points at the end of the third quarter as Christian Wood scored 3 points and then dunked a pass from Austin Reeves.
But the Hornets would make it a game behind Miller, who had 16 points in the fourth quarter. The No. 2 pick in the draft intercepted Reaves’ pass and went the length of the court for a dunk and then added back-to-back 3s to cut the Lakers’ lead to four with about two minutes remaining.
Charlotte had a chance to make it a one-possession game, but Davis blocked Bridges’ step-back 3-point attempt and Reeves made two free throws to cut the lead to six and seal the win.
Bridges finished 16 of 26 from the field with five 3s.
next
Lakers: Host the Nuggets on Thursday night.
Hornets: Host the Raptors on Wednesday night, their third home game in four nights.
,
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Copyright 2024 Stats LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and the Associated Press is strictly prohibited.
