LeBron James poured in 25 points and handed out seven assists as the Los Angeles Lakers set the tone early in the finale of their eight-game road trip, rolling past the Brooklyn Nets 125-109 on Tuesday night in New York.
James shot 10 of 16 from the field, punctuating the first half with two emphatic dunks. He also finished with three rebounds and accounted for three of the Lakers’ 14 steals.
The closing moments brought a family twist. As James remained on the floor, chants of “We want Bronny” echoed through the arena. Bronny James checked in for the final 4:36, drawing a loud ovation from a mostly pro-Lakers crowd and capping the night with two baskets.
Luka Doncic added 24 points on 8-of-18 shooting and sat out the fourth quarter after playing 29 minutes. He also handed out five assists and grabbed six rebounds.
Jake LaRavia contributed 18 points, and Austin Reaves chipped in 15 in his return after missing 19 straight games with a sprained left ankle.
The Lakers went 5-3 on the trip, which was necessitated by the Grammy Awards taking over their home arena, and earned their second lopsided victory of the trek.
Los Angeles made its first seven shots from the field and finished at 54.1%. The Lakers also scored 66 points in the paint to offset a 7-of-31 showing from 3-point range.
Michael Porter Jr. led the Nets with 21 points and 10 rebounds. He missed all nine of his 3-point attempts and shot 7 of 18 overall.
Day’Ron Sharpe finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds for Brooklyn, which lost for the 17th time in 20 games and led only in the opening two minutes. Ziaire Williams added 17 points for the Nets, who scored 69 points in the second half to make the final score more respectable.
The Nets shot 47.9% but missed 31 of 41 3-point attempts and allowed 23 points off 20 turnovers.
Doncic scored 14 points in the first quarter as the Lakers shot 83.3% (15 of 18) and opened a 45-23 lead. Los Angeles took its first 30-point lead when James hit a nine-footer for a 59-29 cushion with 7:53 left, stretched it to 36 on Marcus Smart’s short jumper with 5:20 remaining and carried a 69-40 advantage into halftime.
Doncic’s step-back 3-pointer extended the lead to 83-44 with 8:08 left in the third quarter. The Lakers led 89-55 when James went to the bench with 4:25 remaining, held a 100-74 edge through three quarters and were ahead 111-83 when James checked out for the night with just over eight minutes left.
