LOS ANGELES — The biggest play of Luka Doncic’s 53-point night was a shot he launched from the far free-throw circle as the first half ran out, off the glass and in. The Los Angeles Lakers (8-2) were down double digits and shooting badly, and Doncic said afterward he knew what the shot was for: “It changes the whole energy in the team and in the gym, so I thought it was an important shot to make — so that’s why I decided to make it.” Asked whether he meant to go off the glass: “Sure.”
The Lakers rode that energy into a third quarter that decided the game, outscoring the Portland Trail Blazers (6-2) 34-15 to turn a seven-point halftime deficit into a lead they kept the rest of the night, winning 124-118 at Crypto.com Arena in an Emirates NBA Cup game. Doncic scored 20 of his 53 in that quarter. On the defensive end of it, he said the halftime talk was simple: “We talked in the locker room about belief, and we all believe in each other.” Portland came in with the league’s best offense and scored 15 points in the quarter — “just shows what we’re capable of,” he said.
The night sat on top of the run that has defined the first two weeks of the season. Doncic’s 40-point games, in order: 52 at Utah on Oct. 25, 41 against Portland on Oct. 27, then four straight — 45 against Toronto on Nov. 1, 42 against Miami on Nov. 2, 40 at Sacramento on Nov. 4 and 53 on Friday. Six 40-point games in nine games played, 361 points total. Through eight games he averaged 38.5 a game, first in the league by more than eight points over Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and his 308 points through eight games were the most at that stage of a season since Michael Jordan’s 303 in 1988-89. In the availability, a reporter put the 40-a-game question to him directly — who was the last player to average 40 for a season? Doncic guessed Kobe Bryant, then, told it was a tall guy, landed on Wilt Chamberlain. His answer to whether that kind of season has crossed his mind: “It’s obviously a long season. We’re just 10 games in, we’ve got 72 left. As long as we win, I’m good. Hopefully it continues, but you never know.”
Friday’s scoring came against pressure. Portland has Toumani Camara and Jrue Holiday, “some of the best defenders in the NBA,” Doncic said. “They pressure a lot, so I just used the screen to get downhill and enter the paint.” He finished 17-of-33 from the field and 14-of-18 at the line, with five rebounds and five assists. The Lakers won the margins around him: Portland turned it over 24 times to 11, Los Angeles had 15 steals, and the Lakers owned the offensive glass 17-8. Austin Reaves scored 25 and Walker Kessler had 16 points and 12 rebounds. For Portland, Damian Lillard and Deni Avdija scored 22 apiece, Camara 18 and Donovan Clingan 17 with 11 rebounds.
Asked how he is holding up physically under this workload, Doncic said he is feeling great, and that the shots are there for the whole team even on a night they missed plenty: “If you’re open, shoot the next one. We missed a lot of open looks today but still got a win, so we’ve got a lot of room left for us.” Asked about the smiling, he said: “Basketball was my dream. Playing in the NBA was my dream. So I’m just playing my dream.”
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