Following a tough loss to the Golden State Warriors, the Los Angeles Lakers rebounded with a victory over the New Orleans Pelicans—though they won’t be seeing the Pelicans again in the postseason.
On Sunday, the Lakers faced one of their toughest challenges of the year against the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. They rose to the occasion, dominating early and essentially putting the game away by halftime, ultimately cruising to a 126-99 win.
A key storyline was how well the Lakers contained MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Despite scoring 26 points, he was surprisingly held without a single free throw attempt—the first time that’s happened since 2021.
Despite the strong defensive effort, Lakers guard Luka Doncic still had high praise for Gilgeous-Alexander.
“Shai is an incredible player. He makes that team look elite—and they are,” Doncic said postgame.
Oklahoma City had already clinched the top spot in the Western Conference, so their intensity may not have matched a playoff-level effort. Still, the Lakers will take confidence from the dominant win should they meet again in the postseason.
JJ Redick Praises Doncic
Doncic led the way with a game-high 30 points, along with six assists and seven rebounds. He has consistently performed well against the Thunder throughout his career, and Lakers head coach JJ Redick acknowledged the guard’s standout showing.
“He embraces the challenge,” Redick said. “Night in and night out, he’s facing top-tier defenders and a variety of defensive looks. Some great players lose focus with that, but when a star is fully locked in during a big game, you get special performances. And Luka gave us one tonight.”
With LeBron James starting to cool off after a hot start to the season, it’s clear the Lakers will lean on Doncic as they head into the playoffs.
Redick Commends Defensive Effort
The Lakers put up 126 points on one of the league’s best defensive teams—but perhaps more impressive was holding the NBA’s top squad to under 100 points.
While defense hasn’t been the team’s calling card, they’ve shown they can rise to the occasion when needed. Redick was pleased with their commitment on both ends of the court.
“I thought we were really connected in terms of intent and energy,” he said. “There was strong focus on our defensive game plan and we executed well offensively too, generating quality looks against an elite defense. We never let up.”
The Lakers’ offense can be elite on most nights. If their defense continues to show up in high-stakes games, they could become a serious contender for the title.