LOS ANGELES (AFP) — A Los Angeles Lakers team missing superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis barreled past the National Basketball Association-leading Boston Celtics 114-105 on Thursday as the New York Knicks pushed their winning streak to nine games with a gutsy win over Indiana.
Austin Reaves scored a season-high 32 points to lead six Los Angeles players in double figures, saying afterward he and the rest of the Lakers had taken to heart James’ blunt demand after Tuesday’s loss to Atlanta that his teammates “just go out and do your job.”
“It’s a great message,” Reaves told broadcaster TNT.
“And coming from the greatest player ever, in my opinion, that’s what we should do.”
The latest meeting between the storied rivals, who share the record for most NBA titles with 17 apiece, lost some luster when the Lakers ruled out James with a sore left ankle and Davis with hip spasms and an Achilles tendon injury.
In addition, the Lakers and Celtics are teams on different trajectories as the All-Star break approaches, with the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics boasting the best record in the league while the Lakers, ninth in the West, have struggled to find consistency and had dropped two straight since a thrilling overtime triumph over the Golden State Warriors last Saturday.
