With their fifth straight win over the Kings, the Lakers continue their comeback

While Lakers fans fear that Anthony Davis’ injury will prevent Los Angeles from continuing its climb up the standings, LeBron James and his army continue to rack up wins.

In Sacramento, “The King” (37 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists) and his soldiers won for the fifth time in a row (136-134) and returned to the Wolves for the 11th place in the Western Conference (19 wins – 21). losses) and 10th-ranked Utah (20 wins-22 losses) in the play-in standings.

WHAT TO REMEMBER

– Defense? The two teams were tied at 109 all over after three quarters. The attackers, who had no real desire to prevent violence and confrontations near the circle, were able to show themselves on both sides. Either way, that makes for a 61% shooting success for Los Angeles (50/82) to make up for the team’s 3-point limitations (9/21).

– De’Aaron Fox is “clutch” but hurt. The Kings guard scored 17 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter to give his club a chance to win. Unfortunately for him, Sacramento was never able to make the “stops” needed to get the upper hand on LeBron James, and he was whistled for a final foul on Dennis Schröder that sealed the game, and he missed a late 3-pointer. spot kick from the center line of the match. He was furious with the referees at the final buzzer…

TOPS/FLOPS

✅ Westbrook / Schroder duet. Both leaders were valuable in their respective registers. Russell Westbrook is having a blast off the bench and he’s hitting (23 points, 15 assists, +15 +/-), Dennis Schroder was valuable (27 points 4/5 from long range, +13 +/-) and crucial to seal the win .

✅ LeBron James. Is his 3-point shot still unsolved? No problem with the Kings offering him boulevard corridors to the circle. Just give the 38-year-old veteran a feast at his favorite registry.

Thomas Bryant. His opportunism and positional sense on offense hurt Domantas Sabonis and the Kings, who were constantly surprised to see him get the ball under the rim…

✅ De’Aaron Fox. The “Kings” guard almost broke this match with 17 points he collected in the last quarter. Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t enough in the end.

⛔ Venien Gabriel. Complex entries for a substitute interior who scored 6 points in 13 minutes but committed 6 fouls above all in that short span of time ended up at -12 +/-!

⛔ Defense of kings. The Lakers’ wasn’t flashy either, but given the Lakers’ weakness behind the 3-point line, Sacramento’s inability to protect the perimeter was at least costly. Score 70 points on a racket, that’s impossible when you want to make the playoffs.

NEXT

LA Lakers (19-21): Trip to Nuggets, Monday night (3 p.m.)

Sacramento (20-18): Magic reception, also on Monday evening (04:00)