The Lakers were as complete as they have been in a while on Sunday, giving coach JJ Redick more weapons at his disposal as their schedule picked up pace.
They have Luka Doncic (left groin soreness), center DeAndre Ayton (left knee soreness) and backup center Jackson Hayes (left hamstring tendinopathy) back for Sunday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors. Only Austin Reeves (left calf strain) remained on the sideline.
What’s more, it was a back-to-back that LeBron James even played in one night after the Lakers’ loss in Portland.
Simply put, the Lakers are a solid basketball team when healthy and they’re really good when Doncic, James and Ayton score at least 20 points a game like they did in Victory 110-93 On the Raptors at Crypto.com Arena.
Ayton was at the top of his game, recording a double-double with 25 points and 13 rebounds. He was also 10-for-10 from the field and five-for-six from the free throw line.
Doncic scored 25 points and seven assists, and James had 24 points and seven assists.
Rui Hachimura came off the bench to score 10 points for the Lakers (25-16) The team that entered the match having lost five of the last six matches.
Doncic and Ayton made their presence known in the first half.
Despite committing three fouls in the first half and being fouled in the first quarter, Doncic scored 18 points and five assists in the first 24 minutes. His three-pointer with 0.7 seconds left in the second quarter gave the Lakers a 55-54 lead.
Ayton was active from the start, running the court, getting high passes and scoring in the post, allowing him to finish the first half with 12 points on six-for-six shooting and seven rebounds.
The Lakers will begin what is known as the “Grammy Tour” on Tuesday, an eight-game set that will keep them on the road for about two and a half weeks.
They’ll start in Denver and go to the Clippers, Dallas, Chicago, Cleveland, Washington, Knicks and Nets.
This trip will come after the Lakers played five games in seven days, including two sets of back-to-backs.
““We’ve finished five games in eight nights and started five games in seven nights, and tonight is the icing on the cake,” Redick said. “So it’s been a tough stretch, especially with the injuries and some of the games.”
Redick said the game plan against the Raptors was to field 10 players, a change from the usual nine-man rotation.
All 10 of Redick’s players played when the game mattered most and they all played a part in keeping the team fresh and active.
Something the Lakers will need moving forward.
“Again, I’m not blaming anything, but the Championship Cup this season with that break just created a very unbalanced rhythm of games,” Redick said, referring to the NBA Cup Championship. “And outside of the All-Star break, I think the next two-day break between games will be like the end of March, or something like that. So, you have no choice but to prioritize rest and recovery.”