Failed concluding play involving Luka and LeBron costs Lakers against Magic.
LOS ANGELES — The Lakers fell to the Orlando Magic 110-109 on Tuesday following a failed out-of-bounds play involving LeBron James and Luka Doncic in the closing moments that did not yield a quality shot.
After Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. scored on a putback with 6.7 seconds left to give Orlando a one-point lead, L.A. called a timeout. On the subsequent play, James passed to an open Doncic, who received the ball on the left wing beyond the 3-point arc but chose not to take the shot.
“I know I was open, but I just thought I was a little bit far,” Doncic stated. “Tried to take one dribble closer. And I probably shouldn’t have picked up the ball and just tried to attack.”
Once he halted his dribble, Doncic was quickly double-teamed by the Magic’s Paolo Banchero and Anthony Black. He hesitated, pivoted, and passed the ball back to James, who was guarded by Orlando’s Jonathan Isaac on the wing.
James received the pass with 2.9 seconds remaining, turned away from Isaac, and attempted a 27-foot fadeaway 3-pointer that missed as time expired.
“I thought he had a good look, and it seemed like he kind of just lost his balance,” James remarked when asked for insight into what went wrong. “Didn’t have a rhythm with the ball, whatever the case may be. And it kind of allowed [Orlando’s defense] to get back in front of him. And I was kind of off-balance when he gave it to me. I thought he had a great look. That’s my point of view.”
Doncic, who finished the game shooting 8-for-24 and 2-for-10 from beyond the arc, was questioned about whether his shooting difficulties influenced his decision to decline the initial shot.
“Maybe a little bit,” he replied. “I think I thought there was more time. It was, what, six, seven seconds. There was enough time to get a better look, try to drive the ball, so that’s why I picked [up my dribble].”
Doncic mentioned that he did not discuss the play with James after the game.
When asked if he believed James would have a good chance to win it when he passed the ball, Doncic — who recorded a season-high 15 assists — indicated that he thought James did.
“I mean, I just saw him open, and I didn’t want to lose the ball,” Doncic explained. “We didn’t have timeouts. … [But] I shouldn’t have picked up the ball. I should have attacked. … That’s on me.”
The inbounds play was one of several missed chances that led to L.A. squandering a 12-point lead in the second half and losing for the first time this season when ahead after three quarters, having previously been 25-0.
James missed a free throw with 44.7 seconds remaining that would have given L.A. a three-point advantage, and Orlando’s Desmond Bane hit a 3-pointer on the next possession to give the Magic a one-point lead.
After Banchero missed a pull-up shot with 10.5 seconds left while L.A. was up by one, the Lakers failed to secure the defensive rebound, resulting in Carter’s go-ahead putback.
The defeat against Orlando brought the Lakers’ record to 4-4 during their eight-game homestand. They will travel to face the Phoenix Suns on Thursday, followed by a matchup against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
“It’s a bit upsetting,” Lakers center Deandre Ayton commented on the home losses. “We still got a lot of chances to just get in as good of a position as we can. Did feel weird in the homestand, just being 4-4. It was tough losses and played against some really good teams. But … just get back in the lab and just get ready for the next game.”
