Lakers center Jaxson Hayes, left, dives for a loose ball next to Knicks forward OG Anunoby in the first half Sunday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Hayes crawled across the floor for loose balls. Marcus Smart stepped in front of driving opponents. Jarred Vanderbilt leaped into the laps of front-row fans.
With energy and focus from every player, the Lakers delivered one of their best defensive efforts of the season despite circumstances that could have made Sunday’s game a snoozer.
The Lakers were playing their third game in four days. Losing an hour of sleep because of daylight saving time had Rui Hachimura sleepwalking into the arena Sunday morning for a 12:30 p.m. tip. Hoping to wake himself up, the Lakers forward said he got into the hot tub when he arrived.
Players tried to hype themselves up in the locker room by blasting music. Instead of listing three defensive keys before the game, coaches whittled the game plan to one focus: multiple efforts.
“It wasn’t gonna be an offensive game,” coach JJ Redick said. “This was gonna be a gritty, tough game that we had to win with effort. And we did that.”
Smart led that effort with a game-high plus-27 in 29 minutes and 17 seconds. He drew two charges. His signature moment didn’t even show up in the game play-by-play. After Luka Doncic turned the ball over with 2.2 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Smart hustled back to force Jordan Clarkson to pass the ball at the buzzer, keeping the Knicks from getting a last-second layup attempt. Smart walked to the bench with his arms extended like a defensive back who had just broken up a touchdown pass.
The Knicks were held to less than 100 points for only the seventh time and had their fourth-worst three-point shooting performance of the season, going eight for 34. The Lakers went nearly five minutes without scoring in the fourth quarter, but held on by forcing eight turnovers.
“It was not a perfect game,” said Doncic, who led the Lakers with 35 points on 11-for-25 shooting. “But we fight at the defensive end. I think we did a great job. It says a lot about the team, bringing this much energy in a game like this.”
The Lakers 128-117 winwon, Luka Doncic dominated and then the conversation moved forward, because even though a 128-117 win over the slumping Indiana Pacers on Friday counts all the same in the tight Western Conference standings, it doesn’t say as much about the Lakers as what comes next.
Buoyed by four recent wins over struggling teams, the Lakers are still searching for a statement victory to announce themselves as legitimate contenders in the crowded Western Conference. The Lakers (38-25) are comfortably in sixth place in the West, but just 3-11 against teams that are .600 or better.
Two of the wins came in the first two weeks of the season. The losses have been ugly: an average margin of 19.9 points per defeat.
Now with five of their next six games against teams that are .600 or better — starting with Sunday’s 12:30 p.m. contest against the New York Knicks — the Lakers get a chance to prove their potential to make a playoff run.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves drives to the basket as he’s chased by Indiana Pacers guards Quenton Jackson and Aaron Nesmith Friday at Crypto.com Arena.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
“You play teams that are playing winning basketball and [have] winning records, it definitely can build some confidence in the group,” guard Luke Kennard said Friday. “But I know even some of the close games we’ve lost just recently, I know we’ve done some really good things. … We know what we have in the locker room and in this group.”
Even a day and a win later, the Lakers were still ruing Thursday’s road loss in Denver. With a chance to jump to fifth place in the standings, they let the Nuggets (39-25) open the game on an 11-point run. Denver opened up a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter.
But unlike many of their other losses to playoff-contending teams, the Lakers answered Denver’s run. They cut it to one with 2:05 left before the Nuggets held on for the victory.
“That was a game that we’ve broken throughout the year, in games like that,” coach JJ Redick said. “And they made a number of runs that went to double digits and we just kept playing and had a chance. … I’m confident we’re going to find it. How we’re going to find it, that’s where it’s —”
Redick cut off his own thought as he searched for the words.
“You got to figure it out on a daily basis sometimes,” the coach concluded with a tight smile.
Lakers center Jaxson Hayes scores at the rim in front of Indiana Pacers guard Ben Sheppard Friday at Crypto.com Arena.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
The Lakers figured it out Friday behind a dazzling 44-point performance from Doncic, who leads the NBA with 10 40-point games this season. The NBA’s leading scorer didn’t even play during the fourth quarter of the blowout.
Doncic’s brilliance was more than enough against the bottom-feeding Pacers, who, at 15-48, are playing more for lottery position than postseason hopes. But the Knicks (41-23) have won four of their last five games, including convincing wins over San Antonio and Denver. The only recent loss was a three-point defeat to Oklahoma City.
Lakers forward LeBron James is expected to be available for Sunday’s marquee game after injuring his elbow late in the loss to the Nuggets and missing Friday’s game. Centers Deandre Ayton (left knee soreness) and Maxi Kleber (lumbar back strain) are day-to-day.
Led by Jalen Brunson’s 26.2 points and 6.5 assists per game, the Knicks have the NBA’s third-best offense. Conversely, the Lakers are 21st in defensive rating.
The Lakers emphasized the importance of team defense all season, but Marcus Smart is “the only one that consistently is just doing what he’s supposed to do” on defense, Redick said Friday. Sometimes the former defensive player of the year is forced to overcompensate for his teammates’ mistakes.
Doncic’s defensive lapses are magnified, especially with the team’s recent inconsistencies. But Doncic’s oft-criticized defense has provided some bright spots, Redick said.
When he switches onto the ball, Doncic gives up the lowest number of points per possession among the Lakers’ perimeter players, Redick said. He led the Lakers in rebounding Friday with nine boards, all defensive. Doncic had both of the team’s blocks against the Pacers.
“He’s shown that he can contain the basketball,” Redick said of Doncic’s defense. “He’s obviously one of the best wing defensive rebounders in the NBA. He’s able to generate steals and deflections. And, with some prodding, he’s taking charges as well.”
Doncic has drawn 11 charges this season, the most for a single year in his NBA career.
Palantir co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Alex Karp is among those who announced the tech firm has moved its headquarters to Miami on Tuesday. Photo by Gian Ehrenzeller/EPA
Feb. 17 (UPI) — Artificial intelligence and software analytics firm Palantir Technologies Inc. has moved its headquarters from Denver to Miami, company officials announced on Tuesday.
The announcement was made on social media and says only that Palantir has moved its headquarters to Miami without providing other information.
The tech firm has many government contracts, including with federal immigration law enforcement agencies and the military, which recently triggered protests and vandalism at Palantir’s Denver headquarters.
Palantir co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Alex Karp recently described it as a “completely anti-woke” firm that seeks employees who share its values, according to the Denver Gazette.
Palantir accepted a $30 million contract to create the ImmigrationOS app that enables Immigration and Customs Enforcement to support self-deportation, and the U.S. Army awarded the tech firm an up-to-$10 billion contract to provide data and software tools over the next decade.
Palantir also is among the corporate donors that contributed $300 million to build a ballroom on the site of the former East Wing of the White House.
Palantir’s co-founders established the tech firm in Palo Alto, Calif., in 2003 and in 2020 moved its headquarters to Denver.
The move to Miami follows that of many other tech firms and positions the coastal city as a rival to California’s Silicon Valley.
Florida’s tax-friendly business environment has helped the state to lure many tech billionaires from California, where lawmakers are wrangling over a proposed 5% wealth tax on residents who have a net worth of $1 billion or more.
Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel has relocated to Miami ahead of the tech firm’s headquarters move, and Karp in 2020 said the tech firm does not share the same values as many others in Silicon Valley’s tech community.
Meta Platforms Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg also is among wealthy big-tech bosses who have moved from California to Florida, and many tech firms have established hubs in Miami.
