Lakers Beat Paul George, Thunder with Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony Out
Rob Goldberg@TheRobGoldberg
Featured ColumnistFebruary 9, 2018
In a battle of short-handed teams, Brandon Ingram led the Los Angeles Lakers to a 106-81 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.
Both Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony were out with sprained ankles, per Royce Young of ESPN, while Lonzo Ball missed his 12th straight game due to a knee injury.
The Lakers were also in a roster transition after trading Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. to Cleveland in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye and a first-round pick Thursday. Still, the team won its fourth straight game to improve to 23-31.
Paul George scored 29 points with nine rebounds for the Thunder but couldn't stop his team from falling to 31-24 on the year.
George didn't have a lot of help, but he looked like he wouldn't need it early as he scored 15 points in the first seven minutes.
He ended up scoring 22 in the first half, representing 48 percent of his team's points as the Thunder trailed 52-46 at intermission.
The forward didn't pass the ball much, but when he did, it led to a highlight:
Eventually, the lack of depth became a problem for a team that shot just 35.6 percent from the field.
The Lakers didn't have any issues scoring despite their absences.
Ingram was the most impressive player on the court for the home team, scoring 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting. He also had six assists and one turnover. Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN described his hot shooting:
The second-year player has spent more time running the offense with Ball on the sidelines, and he has become nearly unguardable at times.
Julius Randle also showcased his strength with 17 points and six rebounds, including this big dunk:
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Kyle Kuzma kept it up with strong fourth-quarter showings to help turn a solid lead into a laugher. It was an all-around quality performance for a team that had a thin bench most of the night.
Outside of an early 11-point deficit in the opening minutes, it was complete domination for Los Angeles as it beat Oklahoma City for the second time this week.
The Lakers will have a day off before taking on the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, presumably with their newest additions, Thomas and Frye. The Thunder will return home Sunday for a matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies.