Despite the return of a fully healthy Los Angeles Lakers team, including Rui Hachimura and LeBron James, the Chicago Bulls dominated, winning 146-115. This loss moves the Lakers down in playoff seeding with only 12 games left in the season.
The Lakers now have the same number of losses as the Denver Nuggets. However, they are likely to win the tiebreaker against Denver and secure their division title.
Hachimura had been out for almost a month with a knee injury, and James had missed the last six games due to a groin strain. The Lakers struggled defensively without James, and this continued against the Bulls, who scored points easily.
James showed signs of rust in his first game back, scoring 17 points on 16 shot attempts and committing five turnovers. He also had the lowest plus/minus rating on the team with -27 in 31 minutes played.
On a positive note for the Lakers, Luka Dončić is performing exceptionally well and seems ready for the postseason. After a period of adjustment with the Lakers, Dončić has found his rhythm. He started strong on Saturday, scoring 17 points in the first quarter, following a 21-point first quarter performance against the Nuggets on Wednesday.
Dončić is known for his strong first quarters, and he was particularly effective on Saturday, scoring 29 points with seven 3-pointers in the first half alone.
Dončić finished the game against Chicago with 34 points. Recently, he scored 31 against Denver and 45 against Milwaukee. Over his last 10 games, Dončić is averaging 31.1 points and shooting 43% from three-point range on 11 attempts per game.
Beyond just statistics, Dončić appears to be gaining confidence in a Lakers uniform. LeBron James seems to have given Dončić the primary playmaker role. Although the loss to the Bulls is disappointing, Dončić`s strong play offers a promising outlook for the Lakers as they head into the playoffs.
Jasper Hawthorne