Lakers fall to Mavs in hangover loss
DALLAS — The Los Angeles Lakers fell back to grace in their 127-125 post-NBA Cup loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, despite a combined 70 points from LeBron James and Antony Davis.
The Lakers loss moves their season record to 14–10 and 4-8 in 12 games on the road.
The loss to Dallas was summed up in two ways: Luka Doncic and the surprise career performance from NBA journeyman Dante Exum.
Doncic finished with 33 points and a game-high 17 assists, while Exum finished with 26 points on a career-high seven made threes.
Going into this game, Exum made eight threes on the season, showing why the Lakers' defense kept him open from deep, ultimately biting them.
The Lakers battled back from a flat first half to secure a two-point lead at the end of a 34–22 third quarter.
The fourth quarter came down to the wire in a back-and-forth affair, with Exum getting the last laugh, making five threes in a 16-point fourth-quarter outing.
“You have a game plan; you live with the results,” LeBron said. “Dante [Exum] had a career night from the 3-point line and you tip your hat.”
Davis’ production didn’t slow down in the loss, nor did he play sluggishly despite having a groin issue that affected him. He finished with a team-high 37 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 71.4% from the field on 15-of-21.
LeBron was the Lakers' second-leading scorer in a heavy 40-minute night, with 33 points, nine assists and eight rebounds in his efforts.
“Your so high on the semi-finals and finals of the in-season tournament, then have to get back to the regular season,” LeBron said. “It takes a mental focus and mental approach and AD and I handled it well.”
Austin Reaves continued his punch off the Lakers bench with a strong performance, laying off pressure from LeBron and Davis.
Reaves finished with 22 points, eight assists and five rebounds on 4-for-7 shooting from three and 7-for-14 shooting overall.
LeBron, Davis and Reaves accounted for 92 of the team's 125 points, as Taurean Prince was the only other player to finish scoring in double figures.
Prince provided a deep-range threat from behind the arc, knocking down five of his six attempts from three, totaling 15 points on the night.
The Lakers will remain on the road for three days as they face the 3–19 San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday at 5 p.m. and Friday at 4:30 at the Frost Bank Center.
