Tag: Gameday

The Lakers visit the Nets on Tuesday to conclude their eight game Grammy road trip

NEW YORK — Luka Dončić vs the New York Knicks, 2/1/26, Credit: NBA on NBC

BROOKLYN, NY — Another Grammy road trip concludes on Tuesday night for the Lakers as they visit Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY to face the Nets. Luka Dončić, who is leading the league in scoring with 33.6 points per game will lead the charge along with LeBron James (21.9 ppg).

DeAndre Ayton, will also look to continue his success in the paint on Tuesday as he leads the team with 8.5 rebounds per game.

The Los Angeles Lakers are currently 29-19 and in sixth place in the West while the Brooklyn Nets hold on to the thirteenth spot in the East at 13-35. This will be their first meeting of the 2025-2026 season after splitting their regular season matchups last season 1-1. The Nets are coming off of a big loss to the Pistons on Sunday, 130-77 while the Lakers are looking to right the ship after their 112-100 loss to the Knicks on Sunday as well.

DeAndre Ayton, Lakers @ Knicks, 2/1/26, Credit: NBA on NBC

Austin Reaves is still listed as out on Tuesday with a left calf strain he sustained on Christmas day versus the Rockets. It’s likely that we will not see Austin until the Lakers are back home. They play the Sixers, Warriors, Thunder, Spurs and Mavericks before the All Star Break. Although it’s quite possible that we see Reaves back on the court during one of these home games, not rushing would be the most beneficial move for him and the Lakers as they aim to make a late season run into the playoffs and out of the play-in tournament.

The Lakers’ second unit can have some interesting bursts throughout games but if they are going to compete with the West’s top teams, the supporting cast is going to really have to limit turnovers and make some stops to preserve leads while Luka, LeBron and company get their rest.

Rui Hachimura has to knock down those open looks that he has been getting from three point land while demanding some respect from the defense in the paint or forcing them into fouls. Jaxson Hayes has been having some really fun minutes when he checks in. It seems like lately, we are bound to walk away with a dunk highlight or two from him after every game.

Jarred Vanderbilt is also an interesting one to keep an eye on. His defensive presence along with Marcus Smart’s are two weapons the Lakers desperately need to consistently show up. Both of them also are prone to getting some pretty good open looks at the corners. It makes them a dangerous team from three point land on paper. Gabe Vincent and Jake LaRavia also get those open looks throughout ballgames. Especially when Luka is getting double teamed by defenders.

If everyone can lock in at the same time, this team can really catch some lightning in a bottle once Austin [Reaves] returns and go on a deep run into the postseason. With the trade deadline days away, the Lakers may even be a move or two away from making that happen and changing their trajectory in the standings during the second half of the season.

Lakers @ Nets Tip Off: Tuesday, February 3, 2026 @ 4:30 PM PST/ 7:30 PM EST, Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY
Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY – Tuesday, February 3, 2026 4:30 PM PST/ 7:30 PM EST, Credit: NBA Locker Vision

The 2025-2026 NBA trade deadline is Thursday, February 5, 2026 @ 3 p.m. EST/ 12 p.m. PSPT

Lakers steamroll the Wizards in D.C. 142-111

January 30, 2026; Washington D.C, USA; The Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Washington Wizards 142-111. Credit: Monumental Sports Broadcast

The Lakers visited our nation’s capital Friday night and completely took over from the jump against the Wizards. Everything was running on all cylinders for the Lakeshow, who were coming off their worst loss of the season Wednesday night versus the Cavaliers. They needed a bounce back win and this game was the perfect one to help them do that.

Luka finished the first half with 26 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds to lock in the triple double early. This was the second time he had accomplished this. The last time was as a member of the Dallas Mavericks. Finding his groove early on, Luka was also getting his teammates involved as he connected with Jaxson Hayes three times over the course of the night for an alley oop. He also made a beautiful pass to Jarred Vanderbilt in the paint between two defenders and was in sync with DeAndre Ayton for a few assists that led dunks. The Lakers’ supporting cast really does have to be ready at all times when playing with Luka. The ball could be coming right at them at any time.

January 30,2026; El Segundo, CA, USA; The Lakers lead the Wizards 77-48 at the half. Credit: Spectrum SportsNet

During his postgame interview, when asked what he did differently tonight, DeAndre Ayton told Lakers reporter Mike Trudell, “just take what the defense gives you.” Ending his night with 28 points, 3 assists and 13 rebounds, DeAndre Ayton took every opportunity that the Wizards and his teammates were giving him. Whether he was dunking lob passes or battling for rebounds, he was going to flip the script and make sure that he left his mark on tonight’s game.

LeBron James also didn’t disappoint tonight. In vintage LeBron fashion, we got to witness James turn back the clock with left handed and reverse alley oops and even a few from three point land. He was also active on the defensive end with 2 steals.

At one point the Lakers had a 38 point lead in the game. It’s still a mystery what it is that makes this team lose some steam in the third quarter. They maintained control but it was evident that they took their foot off the gas as the lead was cut down to 24 heading into the fourth, 108-84.

DeAndre Ayton, LeBron James and the Lakers’ second unit would then clean things up and comfortably close the door on the Wizards. So much so that the crowd began to chant for Bronny James to check in. Fans got their wish as he checked in with 5:29 to go in the fourth quarter and later rewarded them with a breakaway one-handed dunk.

The Lakers look to finish out the Grammy trip on a high note when they face the New York Knicks on Sunday at Madison Square Garden and the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Tuesday. Two very important games before returning home to host a handful of games at Crypto.com Arena. The Lakers 4-2 so far on this eight game road trip.

Notable Stats of the Night

Luka Dončić: 37 points , 13 assists, 11 rebounds, 13/21 FG

Deandre Ayton: 28 points, 3 assists, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks, 12/24 FG

LeBron James: 20 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals

Malaki Branham: 17 points

Lakers Upcoming Game:

Lakers (29-18) @ Knicks (30-18)

Madison Square Garden – New York – Sunday, February 1, 2026 – 07:00 PM EST

The Lakeshow arrives in D.C.

Credit: Spectrum SportsNet

The Lakers play the Washington Wizards on Friday night at Capital One Arena. After suffering their worst loss of the season to the Cavaliers on Wednesday, the Lakers look to get back on track and not slip further down in the standings.

As of 11:00PM on 11/29/26, the Lakers are in sixth place in the west. A much needed win is due here. Especially versus the 14th place Wizards. We know how teams like to show up when the Lakers are in town so they cannot take this team lightly. No matter what the standings may show. They want to avoid falling into the play-in tournament at all costs so every win counts from here on out.

Luka Dončić is listed as questionable for Friday’s game with ankle soreness after taking a fall off of the Cavaliers elevated floor on Wednesday. Cleveland is the only team in the league with an elevated court and after the incident that sent Luka to the locker room for a few minutes in the first quarter, it has begun to raise some questions about player safety.

LeBron James looks to bounce back as well from an underwhelming homecoming at Rocket Arena after scoring 11 points and finishing the night with only 3 rebounds and 5 assists. In season 23, he is averaging 22.0 PPG, 5.9 RPG and 6.7 APG. If Luka can’t go on Friday night, LeBron will be the main character that the Lakers will count on to steer the ship towards a win in our nation’s capital before heading over to the Mecca of Basketball for a classic battle against the Knicks.

Lakers lose 129-99 in a rough return to The Land for LeBron

Lakers lose to the Cavaliers 99-129 Wednesday night. Credit: Spectrum SportsNet Broadcast

The Lakers made their visit to Rocket Arena on Wednesday to play the Cleveland Cavaliers. LeBron’s return home to where it all started had a buzz around it with the Spectrum Sportsnet crew for a few days prior to tonight’s tip-off.

Rightfully so. Could this be the final time we see LeBron in a Lakers uniform play in Cleveland? More importantly, could this be the final time we see LeBron James play basketball in Cleveland, period? Just some of the questions that none of us know the answer to but at least we still have the opportunity to witness a legend give us what he has left for the love of the game.

How was he going to respond to fans, the tribute on the jumbotron by the Cavs, and the feeling of coming home in season 23 of his storied career? The Lakers kicked off the first quarter with an 8-0 run. Luka then awkwardly lands on his ankle and has to make his way to the locker room before returning to the floor with a few minutes left in the first quarter.

Slowly but surely, the Cavaliers would begin to find their groove from the three point line which helped them counter any run that the Lakers would go on.

Turnovers started to plague the Lakers throughout the second quarter, but they managed to keep it within two points, trailing 55-57 heading into halftime.

Everything shifted in favor of the Cavs during the third quarter. Most notably, Donovan Mitchell began to really get things going to give the Cavs a double digit lead and completely run away with it from there. He ended the nights with 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

Missed free throws, turnovers and losing the rebound battle all contributed to the Lakeshow dropping this one on the road.

Tonight had the potential to be another special homecoming for LeBron but things fell short after the half and they could never recover. We would not see much of him in the fourth quarter at all.

Midway through the final twelve minutes, the crowd began to chant for Bronny James as he checked into the game and he did not disappoint. A quick 8 points for Bronny in the fourth quarter included a steal that led to a dunk and two from three point land.

The Lakers continue their Grammy road trip and head to Washington, D.C. to play the Wizards on Friday before heading to New York to visit the Knicks and the Nets. We’ll see if they can battle back and earn themselves a few road wins before coming back to a busy February at home.

Luka Dončić: 29 PTS – 5 REB – 6 AST

LeBron James: 11 PTS – 3 REB – 5 AST

Gabe Vincent: 11 PTS – 3 REB. – 1 AST.

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City Champs Media