The defensive effort has been the noticeable difference for the Los Angeles Lakers, as it carried over in their second straight win in Sacramento, beating the Kings 103-99 on Saturday.
L.A. has now won four of their last five games and moved to 3-0 this season against the Kings.
"The way we started these two games defensively is ultimately what gave us a chance to win, because that defense carried over for four quarters in both games," Lakers head coach JJ Redick said.
Here are some takeaways from the Lakers road win in Sacramento:
Effort Down the Stretch
The win came down to the wire, and the biggest moment came with Anthony Davis at the foul line, up two (101-99), with 12.1 seconds left.
Davis, who has had issues hitting free throws late in games, would miss his first attempt. The second attempt would see the same fate, but the hustle effort from Rui Hachimura, tipping the miss back to Davis, helped the Lakers get another opportunity to ice the game.
The Lakers took advantage of their second chance, with Austin Reaves making the next two at the free-throw line to secure the win and improve to 16-12.
Redick emphasized Hachimura’s effort creating the rebound despite the Kings having their rebound lineup in with Domantas Sabonis and Alex Len at the line.
Davis had a team-high 15 rebounds with 10 points and three blocks. Hachimura finished second on the team with 11 boards and nine points.
Defensive Rating
The Lakers defense has been the catalyst of their turnaround success as of late—with a 4-1 record in the last five—and the numbers prove it.
In the last five games, Los Angeles leads the NBA in defensive rating, with a 99.2 rating. In that span, they have averaged 9.8 steals and 7.2 blocks per game.
The Lakers' defensive effort started from the jump, which set the tone early with five stocks to the game—three steals and two blocks—leading to an early 15-7 lead. From then on, the defensive rotation has been at its best to this point and the reason for their success.
“We can feel the energy. We can feel the swagger we have defensively,” Davis said.
L.A. finished the game with 10 steals and six blocks (16 stocks) and allowed just eight fast break points to the Kings.
LeBron Show in Sacramento
Less than 10 days removed from his 40th birthday, LeBron James got the show started early on in Sacramento, on a night needed with Davis making his first bucket in the second half.
James’ strong effort attacking the paint and bullying the Kings inside led to 12 points at the end of the first quarter and a perfect 10-for-10 outing inside the perimeter with 23 points at halftime.
James would finish with a game-high 32 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and four steals in 34 minutes.
In 26 games this season, James is averaging 23 points, 8.9 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game.
And guess what? James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar again.
This was James’ 1,510th game scoring over 10 points, jumping him to number one on the list and passing another NBA record set by Abdul-Jabbar for the second straight game.
Next Game
The Lakers will play their next game at home at Crypto.com Arena on Monday (7:30 p.m.) against the Detroit Pistons.
L.A. will look for their revenge against the team that gave them a 12-point loss on the road to Detroit earlier in the season (Nov. 4).