league history

PHOENIX — Candace Parker, Elena Delle Donne, Chamique Holdsclaw and the 1996 U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team will be enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame later this year.

Parker, Holdsclaw and members of the 1996 Olympic team were all in attendance Friday at halftime of the UConn-South Carolina game during the women’s NCAA Final Four, where the selections were announced, as was Amar’e Stoudemire and Mike D’Antoni.

They will be joined by longtime NBA official Joey Crawford, NBA coach Doc Rivers and Gonzaga coach Mark Few in the Hall of Fame.

Parker won three titles in the WNBA with three different teams: Los Angeles, Chicago and Las Vegas. She is the only player in league history to win both the MVP and Rookie of the Year in the same season.

She also won two titles while playing in college for Tennessee under Hall of Fame coach Pat Summitt, plus two Olympic gold medals and two WNBA MVP awards.

Delle Donne won two league MVP awards in 2015 and 2019, the second of which came when she led the Washington Mystics to their lone WNBA championship. Delle Donne became the first player in league history to shoot more than 50% from the field, 40% from three-point range and 90% from the free-throw line.

Holdsclaw won three straight titles at Tennessee from 1996-98, the first team to accomplish that. The 1998 championship was Tennessee’s first undefeated season at 39–0 and the Vols also set an NCAA record for the most wins in a season. Holdsclaw went on to have an 11-year WNBA career.

Stoudemire, who was the only NBA player in this year’s class, was Rookie of the Year in 2003 and became six-time All-Star. He spent the first eight years of his career with the Phoenix Suns, where he teamed with D’Antoni.

Rivers has nearly 1,200 victories on his resume, which puts him eighth on the all-time wins list. He led the Boston Celtics to the NBA championship in 2008 and also was in charge of the Los Angeles Clippers during their Lob City era.

Few has won more than 770 games at Gonzaga in his career at the school. He set the NCAA Division I men’s coaching record by winning 81 games in his first three years at the school.

Crawford officiated 2,561 regular-season NBA games and 50 Finals games over his 39-year career. He retired in 2016.

The enshrinement ceremony will take place in August at the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass.

The Lakers followed the lead of their oldest member, the triple-double producing LeBron James, in dispatching the Wizards 120-101 at Crypto.com Arena on Monday night.

Two days off between games left James looking spry, with lob dunks and dunks on the fast break contributing to his 21 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. James was eight for 16 from the field in notching his third triple-double of the season and the 125th of his 23-year NBA career, ranking him fifth all time.

At 41 years and 90 days old, James once again became the oldest player in league history to record a triple-double, passing his previous mark (41 years, 79 days).

Lakers star LeBron James dunks against Washington at Crypto.com Arena on Monday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

“I mean, I’ve had moments more this year and last year that I’ve enjoyed more in the moment,” James said. “It’s pretty cool to know that I’m at this point in my career (and) I’m still able to do those things, man. It’s super dope. It’s super humbling. And I just try to put the work in and continue to put the work in and those are the results of it.”

James achieved the triple-double despite playing just 33 minutes.

“Yeah, I don’t know what to say. He’s very praise-worthy,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “I tried to give every version of the same soliloquy about his longevity. But I don’t have anything for you tonight.”

For James and his teammates, Sunday’s practice had “value” because it allowed them to clean up some things, do some “teaching” and get some “reps” that will pay off with the playoffs approaching.

They put that into action against the Wizards, but the Lakers did so without star guard Luka Doncic, who did not play after being given a one-game suspension by the NBA for his 16th technical foul.

Austin Reaves took over the primarily ballhandling duties with Doncic out, running the show in delivering a near double-double with 19 points and nine assists. Reaves was just four for 11 from the field and he missed all four of his three-point attempts, but he was 11 for 12 from the line.

Lakers guard Luke Kennard, center, drives between Washington’s Tre Johnson, left, and Jamir Watkins during the first half Monday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Backup center Jaxson Hayes was outstanding in scoring 19 points on eight-for-eight shooting, including a three-pointer with six minutes and 41 seconds left.

Luke Kennard had 19 points off the bench, knocking down four of five from three-point range.

Deandre Ayton was a force for the Lakers, his efficient five-for-five shooting leading to 12 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.

Each of them played their part to help the Lakers win for the 12th time in 13 games and limit the effect of Doncic’s absence.

Doncic leads the NBA in scoring (33.7 points per game), is fourth in assists (8.2), second three-pointers made (4.0) and first in points scored in the first quarter (12.0). He’ll return against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night.

“Yeah, I mean we had a professional approach,” James said. “We came in, we got the job done, understanding it doesn’t matter who we’re playing, we’re still trying to build habits for the postseason. So, a good win for us.”

Although the Lakers won handily, it was against a Wizards team tied for the worst record in the NBA (17-58). Washington has lost 18 of its past 19 games.

For the Lakers (49-26), the game was about making strides from a practice they rarely get to have.

“The value is being able to continue to improve,” Redick said before the game. “And again, I said this, we’ve placed a heavy emphasis on what we’re teaching in film and what we’re cleaning up in film, because we haven’t had court time to do that. So [Sunday], it was some of the game clean-up stuff. All the guys got some reps doing some things that they probably won’t do during a real game.”

AUSTIN, Texas — Hugo Lloris finished with two saves for LAFC in a record fifth straight shutout to begin a season, and Brad Stuver stopped the only shot he faced for Austin FC in a scoreless draw on Saturday night.

Lloris and LAFC (4-0-1) began the season with four shutout victories, just one of four teams in league history to accomplish the feat. His scoreless stretch of 450 minutes is the longest in league history to begin a season.

Lloris nearly surrendered his first goal of the season in the 63rd minute, but a Myrto Uzuni netter off a corner kick by Facundo Torres was disallowed after Ilie Sánchez was charged with a foul following a video review — and that led to a yellow card on Uzuni.

Neither keeper faced a shot on goal in a scoreless first half.

Austin (1-2-2) swept LAFC last year during the regular season but couldn’t get past the Western Conference stalwarts in the playoffs. Both of the club’s losses this season have come on the road.

LAFC eliminated Alajuelense on Tuesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup. The club is 7-0-2 so far through all competitions.

LAFC began the day tied with the Vancouver Whitecaps for first place in the hotly contested West.

Up next for LAFC: vs. Orlando City at BMO Stadium on April 4.