LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic scored 51 points Thursday, his highest-scoring game with the Lakers, and L.A. rolled over the Chicago Bulls 142-130 in LeBron James’ return from a three-game absence.
“It feels special,” said Doncic, who checked out late in the fourth quarter to a standing ovation, with James imploring the crowd to cheer louder. “Obviously, to have a 50-point game in here, it feels very special.”
James scored 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting with seven rebounds and seven assists, and all five Lakers starters scored in double digits as L.A.’s first unit scored 137 points, the most by a starting lineup in a regulation game since the 1970-71 season, according to ESPN Research. Austin Reaves (30 points), Deandre Ayton (23 points) and Rui Hachimura (15 points) also poured it on.
Lakers coach JJ Redick said it was an intentionally team-first approach and an example of sacrifice by James, who saw L.A. rip off a three-game winning streak while the 41-year-old was sidelined with foot, elbow and hip injuries.
“LeBron and I, we talked, we had a great conversation over the last couple days,” Redick said. “He wants to do everything possible to help his team win, and he understands the importance of making sure Luka and AR can be at their best. And you know, that’s incredible with him.
“It speaks a lot to just how much he cares about this team and his teammates, and how much he wants to win.”
Did James consider it a sacrifice to play that way?
“I mean, if it benefits others, it benefits the team. The team is most important,” he said. “Everybody’s successful when we win. So yeah, it is a sacrifice. I know what I’m capable of still doing as an individual, but what’s important for this team, I’m able to adapt to. … And that’s the only thing that matters. And the win is the only thing that matters.”
L.A. is 8-3 this season when James is not one of the team’s top two players in field goal attempts, according to ESPN Research.
It was the Lakers’ seventh win in their past eight games, as they’ve shot up to No. 3 in the Western Conference standings with 16 games remaining in the regular season.
As solid as James was against Chicago, that surge has largely been because of Doncic and Reaves reaching another level.
“AR and Luka,” James said, “offensively, have been magical and dynamic.”
Doncic, who barely missed a triple-double with 10 rebounds and nine assists, said the spell he cast on the Bulls was thanks to Chicago’s 21-year-old forward Matas Buzelis.
“Somebody started talking to me, so that woke me up,” Doncic said of Buzelis. “I’m not going to say what he said, but if I said that, I would definitely get a tech.”
Reaves, meanwhile, scored more than 25 points for the third straight game, his longest such streak since late November before he suffered a left calf strain that sidelined him for more than a month from late December through early February. Reaves also topped 5,000 points for his career Thursday, becoming the 46th undrafted player in league history to reach that plateau.
“I obviously have delusional confidence in myself when it comes to basketball,” Reaves said. “But when the game’s over and I’ve got to go home and think about it, I don’t really think of myself in the category of some of these other guys. But I just enjoy playing basketball, playing the right way and continuing to get better.”
And it would appear that the Lakers are improving as a group at the perfect time.
“Every game matters and the way that you approach the game matters,” James said. “I mean, it’s mid-March. The postseason is in a month, so it has to be 1773388394.”
Said Doncic: “It’s definitely the right moment [to play better]. But, obviously, we got to continue to do that. If we relax now, it’s not going to be worth [anything]. So we got to keep doing that same thing.”
