NBA
LeBron injured, Lakers stumble
Los Angeles was flying high, but injuries and back-to-back losses threaten to derail a season that had suddenly turned into a title dream.

The Lakers’ winning streak came to a screeching halt at the Garden. The team from Los Angeles arrived at basketball’s sacred arena — a stage that has witnessed countless historic moments — riding eight straight victories and seemingly unstoppable. But the Celtics, living up to their status as defending champions, shattered the purple and gold’s momentum. The Lakers are fighting to secure second place in the Western Conference, but with so little time left, the battle is fierce and the margin for error small.
What happened to the Lakers? LeBron happened
The Nuggets, Rockets, and Grizzlies are also locked in this fight, while the Warriors have shown up to the party a little late. Yet, everything is still up for grabs in a Western Conference final stretch that promises to be wild — unusually dramatic for a part of the season where most things are typically settled. The only team that can breathe easy is Oklahoma City Thunder, who continue to dominate with an iron grip. The rest? Fighting tooth and nail to lock in the best possible playoff position.
In the thick of that battle are the Lakers, whose season was turned upside down by the blockbuster Luka Doncic trade — a move that shook the NBA to its core. Nothing like it had ever been done before. And while the Lakers were already on an upward trajectory, the arrival of the Slovenian superstar sent them soaring, racking up win after win and creating moments for the history books. The buzz was off the charts — and still is.
Mavericks struggling post-Doncic
Meanwhile, the Mavericks have collapsed into total misery, paying the price for a decision that nobody, to this day, understands — and probably never will. The league’s biggest asset (Doncic) joining its biggest market (the Lakers) sparked a love story that’s still being written. Los Angeles, a city already bathed in lights, has never shone brighter. And now, a fanbase that used to whisper about its team’s chances is shouting loud and clear: “We can win it all.”
The championship dream is real, tangible — within reach. But winning in the NBA is never easy, something the Lakers understand better than anyone.
Still, those dreams were slightly clouded after the loss to the Celtics. Not so much because of the defeat itself — the Lakers had just endured a grueling overtime win against the Knicks, while Boston was well-rested, having benched most of its starters the game before — but because LeBron James went down with an injury. On the surface, it doesn’t seem serious. But this isn’t the first time his groin has betrayed him, and though “King James” still sips from the fountain of youth at 40, he is, after all, human.
And so, doubts linger about the partnership between the two stars — those nagging physical issues that could haunt them come playoff time. For Doncic, injuries have already kept him from reaching the 65-game minimum needed for individual awards. And LeBron, playing at an MVP level (yes, seriously), could be sidelined for one to two weeks— though with his superhuman physique, nothing is ever certain.
Sure, playoff seeding is important — but getting there healthy is everything. And if both LeBron and Doncic are firing when the postseason arrives, there may be no stopping the Lakers.
Against that backdrop, the Lakers arrived in Brooklyn to face a struggling Nets team — on a day when ticket prices dropped 59% the moment it was announced LeBron wouldn’t play. And the Lakers stumbled badly (111-108), picking up a second straight loss despite Doncic’s monster triple-double: 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists in over 41 minutes on the court.
They dominated early, flying out to a 28-16 first quarter lead and building a 15-point cushion, but fizzled out dangerously as Brooklyn mounted an unexpected comeback. “We just wanted to take shortcuts,” said JJ Redick afterward, as the Lakers’ hopes took another hit — compounded by wins for the Nuggets, Grizzlies, and Rockets.
Despite racking up 31 assists and shooting nearly 50% from beyond the arc (19-for-40), Los Angeles couldn’t close it out. Doncic’s desperate last shot didn’t fall, and that was that.
Brooklyn, playing for pride more than playoff position, got huge contributions from Noah Clowney (19 points), Cameron Johnson (18), Keon Johnson (18), Tyrese Martin (14), and Nic Claxton (12) — a collective effort masterminded by coach Jordi Fernández, who took home a massive win against one of the hottest teams in the league.
The Lakers, who had been soaring, now find themselves temporarily grounded. Just another twist in the never-predictable story that is the NBA.
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2
Cameron Johnson
|
8
Ziaire Williams
|
33
Nicolas Claxton
|
45
Keon Johnson
|
1
D'Angelo Russell
|
4
Reece Beekman
|
21
Noah Clowney
|
10
Tyson Etienne
|
27
Maxwell Lewis
|
13
Tyrese Martin
|
20
Day'Ron Sharpe
|
22
Jalen Wilson
|
12
Tosan Evbuomwan
|
0
Dariq Whitehead
|
Min | Pts | TR | OR | DR | Ast | Los | Rec | Blk | S1 | S2 | S3 | RF | CF | Val | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2
Cameron Johnson
|
32 | 18 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4/8 | 4/11 | 2/3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
8
Ziaire Williams
|
31 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2/2 | 1/2 | 1/8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
33
Nicolas Claxton
|
31 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0/0 | 6/7 | 0/0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
45
Keon Johnson
|
25 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3/6 | 3/6 | 3/4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
1
D'Angelo Russell
|
28 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2/4 | 0/3 | 2/6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
4
Reece Beekman
|
8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/1 | 1/2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
21
Noah Clowney
|
22 | 19 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6/7 | 2/3 | 3/8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
10
Tyson Etienne
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
27
Maxwell Lewis
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
13
Tyrese Martin
|
27 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0/0 | 1/6 | 4/8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
20
Day'Ron Sharpe
|
16 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1/2 | 2/6 | 1/1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
22
Jalen Wilson
|
15 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1/1 | 0/0 | 1/5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
12
Tosan Evbuomwan
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
0
Dariq Whitehead
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
4
Dalton Knecht
|
7
Gabe Vincent
|
27
Alex Len
|
77
Luka Dončić
|
15
Austin Reaves
|
30
Jordan Goodwin
|
55
Trey Jemison III
|
10
Christian Koloko
|
20
Shake Milton
|
88
Markieff Morris
|
5
Cam Reddish
|
2
Jarred Vanderbilt
|
9
Bronny James Jr.
|
Min | Pts | TR | OR | DR | Ast | Los | Rec | Blk | S1 | S2 | S3 | RF | CF | Val | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4
Dalton Knecht
|
41 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0/2 | 5/9 | 3/9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
7
Gabe Vincent
|
33 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2/2 | 2/3 | 6/9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
27
Alex Len
|
13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0/0 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
77
Luka Dončić
|
41 | 22 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3/4 | 5/16 | 3/10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
15
Austin Reaves
|
36 | 17 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10/11 | 2/9 | 1/5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
30
Jordan Goodwin
|
24 | 17 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0/0 | 1/2 | 5/6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
55
Trey Jemison III
|
17 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0/0 | 1/3 | 0/0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
10
Christian Koloko
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
20
Shake Milton
|
5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
88
Markieff Morris
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
5
Cam Reddish
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2
Jarred Vanderbilt
|
26 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0/0 | 2/2 | 1/1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
9
Bronny James Jr.
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |