In this game of “he said, he said,” Luka Doncic got the last laugh.
Doncic, fueled by trash talk of his opponents Thursday, recorded his first 50-point game with the Lakers, checking out with 1:41 remaining to a standing ovation with 51 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to lead the Lakers to a 142-130 win over the Chicago Bulls.
The Lakers (41-25) moved into third place in the Western Conference with their seventh win in the last eight games, climbing from sixth in just one week despite not having LeBron James for the previous three games.
James, returning from elbow and hip bruises sustained in a fall against the Denver Nuggets on March 5, had 18 points with seven rebounds and seven assists. Austin Reaves scored 30 points with seven assists to reach 5,000 career points, and Deandre Ayton had his second consecutive double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
The Lakers let the struggling Bulls (27-39) go on a 12-3 run to tie the score at the end of the first quarter but started to heat up when Doncic scored 10 consecutive points in the second quarter. The streak signaled to the six-time All-Star he was going to have one of those nights.
“Somebody started talking to me,” Doncic said, “so I woke up.”
When asked who antagonized him, Doncic paused to scan the stat sheet in front of him.
“Matas,” the Lakers superstar said after five seconds. “Buzelis.”
The 21-year-old forward had 22 points and six rebounds for the Bulls, who were led by 27 points and 15 assists from Josh Giddey.
Doncic hit a one-legged midrange fadeaway over Buzelis midway through the second quarter and pointed toward the Bulls forward. He made a three over Buzelis a minute later and turned his head toward him while running back on defense. When he used a screen from Ayton to get past Buzelis and kissed the ball off the backboard on a left-handed finger roll, Doncic gestured toward Buzelis again.
The second-year former first-round draft pick didn’t even have to be on the floor to face Doncic’s wrath. After Doncic hit a pullup free-throw-line jumper with 2:52 left in the second quarter, he pointed to Buzelis, who was standing at the scorers’ table.
“It’s fun and it’s funny at the same time,” Reaves said of Doncic’s trash talk, “because half the time I don’t even know what the hell he’s saying. It’s never in English. … He’s a competitor at the end of the day and he wants to win as badly as anybody. When somebody goes at him, we like the aggression he plays with and how he channels it. So I’ll continue to do that to try to make him mad.”
Doncic, who speaks English, Spanish, Slovenian and Serbian, doesn’t need any extra motivation. The NBA’s leading scorer has averaged 40.3 points in the last four games, all Lakers wins.
Since Jan. 1, Doncic is shooting 40.4% from three-point range on 10.4 attempts per game. On the same average of attempts, Warriors star Stephen Curry is shooting 38.4% from three during that span.
After spending much of his first season with the Lakers in a stunned funk following the blockbuster trade that shipped him out of Dallas, Doncic has tried to revive his joyful style this season. He has embraced his sarcastic sense of humor with teammates and staff. He and Reaves have a running bit that they aren’t actually friends at all, and after Doncic came up short of a 50-point game earlier this season by missing a late free throw against Minnesota, teammates teased him relentlessly.
Lakers star Luka Doncic shoots over Bulls forward Jalen Smith (25) in the second half Thursday.
Lakers star Luka Doncic shoots over Bulls forward Jalen Smith (25) in the second half Thursday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
He calmly made two late free throws for his 50th and 51st points Thursday as Lakers fans showered him with chants of “MVP.”
Doncic’s ability to not only respond to trash talk but to channel it while maintaining his all-around level of play is “a unique trait,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said.
“Maybe,” Doncic said with a smirk, “that’s what made me a little bit good at basketball.”
Luka Doncic shoots a three-pointer over Bulls forward Jalen Smith during the Lakers' win Thursday.
Luka Doncic shoots a three-pointer over Bulls forward Jalen Smith during the Lakers’ win Thursday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
The Lakers are 8-4 since the All-Star break with a 119.9 offensive rating compared with their 116.3-point mark before the break. Their four-game winning streak includes two of their most impressive wins of the season. Consecutive victories over the New York Knicks and the Minnesota Timberwolves put the Lakers back in the contender conversation.
James called the offensive chemistry between Doncic and Reaves during the last three games “magical.” Fitting back into the scheme after his absence, James focused on setting screens for the shorthanded frontcourt that was without Jaxson Hayes (back soreness) and Maxi Kleber (lumbar back strain). He locked in on defense to make up for a hip injury that kept Marcus Smart sidelined.
James didn’t take a shotin the first quarter. He didn’t score his first points until 54 seconds left in the second quarter, helping the Lakers finish the half on a 5-0 run to take a five-point halftime lead.
The 41-year-old came alive in the third quarter, beginning with his dunk off a hit-ahead pass from Doncic. He returned the favor by diving out of bounds for a steal on the next possession and the save led to a three-pointer by Doncic.
Lakers star LeBron James, center, drives between Chicago's Rob Dillingham, left, and Matas Buzelis.
Lakers star LeBron James, center, drives between Chicago’s Rob Dillingham, left, and Matas Buzelis during the second half Thursday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
As the Bulls called timeout less than a minute into the third quarter, Doncic said a few extra words to Buzelis after he sank a three over Buzelis’ extended arm. Still early in his NBA career, the experience provided a valuable lesson for the 21-year-old.
“Probably not to talk to him,” Buzelis told reporters from his locker.
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