Lakers beat Thunder in short-handed battle.
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Lakers bounced back in a must-win matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday, winning 123–117 without key stars LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and D’Angelo Russell in the lineup.
With their needed win in a close Western Conference, the Lakers improved their season record to 30–33, moving them back into 11th place in the West and two games from the 8th seed, where the Pelicans currently stand.
“Wasn’t gonna be easy by any means ending the three-game road trip in this building, but we found a way, and it worked out,” said head coach Darvin Ham.
With the rotation hit by the injury bug, the Lakers looked to their role players to steal a win in Oklahoma City, with Dennis Schröder answering the call and bouncing back from Tuesday’s loss to the Grizzlies, scoring a team-high 26 points and adding six assists and two steals in 37 minutes played.
During the first half, Schröder landed on a Thunder player's ankle on a layup attempt, causing him to immediately fall to the floor in pain, holding his left ankle. Schröder was able to tough it out and play the remainder of the game, showcasing his willpower for the Lakers, who needed him to get out of Oklahoma City with a win.
“I always heal pretty quickly with ankle injuries,” said Schröder on his ankle. “Treat it tonight when I get home, and I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Austin Reaves was the Lakers’ firepower off the bench, scoring 19 points and shooting a near-perfect stat line in the box score, going 5-for-5 from the floor, 1-for-1 from deep, and 8-for-9 from the foul line while adding four assists and one steal in 24 minutes of action.
“I think it’s a big win and a big-time performance from us,” said Reaves.
With the Lakers shorthanded, Troy Brown Jr. got the nod in the starting lineup, stepping up marvelously for Los Angeles, scoring 19 points on 4-for-7 shooting from three and 7-for-10 shooting overall. Brown Jr. also added four assists, two blocks, one rebound, and one steal in 33 minutes.
“Today, I wanted to really be locked in and make sure I was knocking them down,” said Brown Jr.
After the game, ESPN reported that D'Angelo Russell will miss his fourth straight game this Friday in the Lakers’ next matchup against the Timberwolves as his right ankle sprain is still bothering him. Sunday’s matchup against the Warriors is a potential return date for the point guard, with Russell saying, “We’ll see once we get through Friday.”
The Lakers’ next matchup comes on Friday at home against the Minnesota Timberwolves at 7:30 p.m. on Spectrum SportsNet.
