Strengthening their grip on the second seed in the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the New York Knicks in an overtime game on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena. Winning their eighth-straight game, the Lakers were again led by the superstar duo of LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
In his 10th Lakers game, Doncic finished with 32 points, seven rebounds and 12 assists. James added 31 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in 44 minutes of action. While this game was all about the Lakers and their star duo, James and Doncic were not the only ones finding success on Thursday night.
After the third quarter, a Lakers fan connected on a half-court shot that won him $100,000 in prize money.
"Between the third and fourth quarters of tonight's game between the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks, Michael Ball of Apex, N.C., hit a half-court shot to win the $100,000 MGM Rewards Big Shot Jackpot," the Lakers wrote in a statement via their public relations account on X.
LAKERS FAN HITS HALFCOURT SHOT TO WIN $100K AND SHOWS OFF HIS KOBE TAT pic.twitter.com/5iKCerlnQD
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 7, 2025
The crowd went crazy, and even Lakers rookie Bronny James had a noticeable reaction to the $100,000 shot.
"Bronny's reaction to the $100k half-court shot at tonight's Lakers game," NiceKicks wrote on X, sharing a photo of James.
Bronny's reaction to the $100k half-court shot at tonight's Lakers game https://t.co/JvTAH3VNlFpic.twitter.com/S9NSKa3z8p
— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) March 7, 2025
The Lakers added in their release, "The 32-year-old became the 16th winner, aside from former Lakers player Vlade Divac, to win the MGM Rewards Big Shot Jackpot, a promotion which began during the 2006-07 season. Ball is the first MGM Rewards Big Shot Jackpot winner of the season and first since Fidel Olmos of Redlands, Calif., won $100,000 on Jan. 9, 2024."
For Michael Ball, not only does he go home with a Lakers overtime win, but also $100,000 richer.
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This story was originally published March 7, 2025 at 1:14 AM.