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LeBron James was exhausted. Marcus Smart was drained. Luke Kennard was invisible.
The Lakers were cooked, the playoff magic finally drained from a team without its two leading scorers, a team in the process of making every conceivable mistake, reality bouncing off their feet and ricocheting off their hips and falling out of their hands.
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On a jarring Friday night at Houston’s Toyota Center, the Rockets led by six with 30 seconds remaining and had possession of the ball. They just needed to get it upcourt. They just needed to play catch.
The Lakers were done.
And if you believe that, then you don’t believe what they believe.
They believed Smart would steal a terrible backcourt pass, absorb a terrible shooting foul and make three free throws.
Read more: Marcus Smart leads Lakers to commanding 3-0 lead over Rockets in playoff series
They believed James would knock away a dribble on the next possession, run to beyond the three-point line, take a pass from Kennard and sink a game-tying trey.
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They believed in the miracle of forcing this game into overtime, then believed in the destiny of a 112-108 victory to take an historically insurmountable three-games-to-none lead in a first-round playoff series they should have lost.
How frantic was that finish? In the postseason over the last 29 years, NBA teams that led by six or more points in the last 30 seconds are now 1,713-2.
“It was just a gutty win for us,” James said.
Gutty, gritty, growling, great, great win.
“Everything that we needed to do, even when it wasn’t pretty, we just kind of found a way to do it,” said coach JJ Redick. “And … we’re playing hard. I mean, that’s what you have to do to put yourself in a position to win.”
Lakers center Deandre Ayton, right, and guard Marcus Smart slap hands as they celebrate in overtime during their win Friday. (Kenneth Richmond / Getty Images)
They are true believers, this bunch, as much as any Laker team has believed since the 2020 championship run, perhaps more than any other Lakers team in history.
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They believe in their legendary leader, LeBron. They believe in the playoff-tough…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/plaschke-believe-yet-lakers-leave-110000770.html
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Publish date : 2026-04-25 11:00:00
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