NEW ORLEANS – LeBron James hailed a “gritty” win as the Los Angeles Lakers held off a furious late rally to beat the New Orleans Pelicans 110-106 on April 16, and book a first-round National Basketball Association (NBA) play-off clash with defending champions Denver Nuggets.
The four-time NBA champion scored 23 points with nine rebounds, nine assists and three steals at the Smoothie King Centre to lead Los Angeles in the play-in victory that secured them the seventh seeding in the Western Conference.
The 39-year-old superstar is in the play-offs for the 17th time in 21 seasons and will get another shot at Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, who swept the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals on their way to the title last season.
“We understood after how we had played the last game that they were going to give us everything they had – the whole kitchen sink and the toolbox – and they did that,” said James in reference to their last regular-season game when they beat the Pelicans 124-108.
“So it was a gritty win for us and we punched our ticket to the post-season.”
Zion Williamson scored 40 points and was key in the Pelicans’ rally from an 18-point third-quarter deficit.
He threw down an alley-oop dunk to level at 93-93, then tied it at 95-95 with 3min 19sec remaining but appeared to land awkwardly and was soon out of the game. He threw a towel in disgust as he headed to the locker room for good.
The Pelicans kept the pressure on without him. They tied it twice more, but D’Angelo Russell’s three-pointer with 51.3sec remaining pushed the Lakers’ lead to four points and Los Angeles, with a timely rebound and a pair of free throws from Anthony Davis, held on for the win.
Russell drilled five of the Lakers’ 14 three-pointers on the way to 21 points, while Davis scored 20 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in the victory.
The Lakers will open their best-of-seven series against second-seeded Denver on April 20.
“They’ve had a ton of success against our ball club, but there’s always a new day. We like where we are, we like where the spirit of our group is. Everybody is excited about this challenge,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said.
The Pelicans, meanwhile, still have a chance.
On April 19, they will face the Sacramento Kings for the eighth and final play-off berth in the West but Williamson, who also had 11 rebounds and five assists, is a concern with “left-leg soreness”.
“He’s going to get some imaging tomorrow and we’ll figure out more,” coach Willie Green said.
The 23-year-old power forward, whose career has been hindered by injuries, remains in search of his first play-off appearance since he entered the league as the top pick in the 2019 draft.
His status will be key against a Kings team riding high after their 118-94 blowout victory over the Golden State Warriors. AFP
