Category: Basketball

One night after he tipped in a winning shot to beat the Indiana Pacers, LeBron James sat at his locker and tried his best to say the Lakers needed to put what happened Thursday behind them.

The joy he felt in Indiana, walking off the court beating his chest in triumph and shooting his wristbands into the crowd, violently swung toward disappointment after the Lakers' 119-117 loss on Josh Giddey’s half-court buzzer-beater in Chicago.

“This is the NBA,” he said.

No way. Not this. This isn’t normal. A win like that followed by a loss like this? Never happens.

James’ postgame words were mostly unimportant, save for taking responsibility for a defensive miscommunication that led to a three and a disastrous inbounds pass he threw after that led to another. It was his actions that said the most.

He pieced together a stat sheet that had been torn right down the middle, studying how the Bulls had made 19 threes, including 11 of 14 in the fourth quarter when they scored 44 points. Then he took the two pieces of paper and shuffled them like a stack of playing cards, one on top of the other over and over again as he tried to explain how the Lakers squandered this chance.

“We put ourselves in position to win,” James repeated.

As he finished his interview, he balled the paper up and tossed it in the garbage.

While overreacting to any loss, particularly one that ends with a player swishing a shot from 47 feet, is risky, this one punctured the Lakers’ locker room because of the hope Wednesday’s win had given them.

Read more:Lakers sign Jordan Goodwin, waive Cam Reddish

After losing three in a row, including two with their roster intact, the win against the Pacers seemed like a moment when the team could get some of its swagger back, an attitude built over the season’s middle months before injuries to James, Rui Hachimura, Jaxson Hayes and others happened in the most compact portion of their schedule.

Worn down emotionally and worn out physically, the Lakers felt the win was like a double shot of espresso, the energy instantly flipping.

“Sometimes your group just needs a win," coach JJ Redick said before the loss to the Bulls.

“Devastation. It's a hell of a way to lose a basketball game,” Redick said after the game.

The 48 minutes of basketball in between showed the wild variance the Lakers have played with recently, the team struggling to contain Chicago in the first quarter before finding its footing in the second and third, pushing the game to the edges of a blowout.

The Lakers held the Bulls to 43 points in the middle quarters before giving up 44 in the fourth, blowing an 18-point lead.

And still they had chances to win. And it sure seemed like they would.

With the Bulls within one, Austin Reaves scored on a one-footed bank shot to put the Lakers up 113-110 with 26.5 seconds left. The Lakers forced Giddey into airballing a floater on the baseline, grabbed the rebound and Reaves hit a pair of free throws to give the Lakers a five-point lead with 12.6 seconds left.

But James left Patrick Williams on the Bulls’ sideline out-of-bounds play to chase the ball, and Nikola Vucevic quickly pushed it to the corner where Williams made a three. James then badly botched the inbounds pass, softly trying to guide the ball to Reaves and leaving it for Giddey to grab. The Bulls then swung it to Coby White, who hit his fourth three of the quarter to put the Bulls up one, Chicago scoring six points in 6.5 seconds.

“Horrible turnover by myself,” James said. “Bad miscommunication play before that.”

Giddey told reporters he almost was shocked at how simple it was to cause the turnover.

“He kinda just bounced it,” Giddey said of the inbound pass. “I was surprised at how easy I was able to grab it.”

Reaves said he was trying to seal his defender, Williams, more than he was moving to the ball, allowing Giddey to go from guarding the passer to getting the steal and the assist.

However, the Lakers perfectly executed a play for Reaves to score on a layup, retaking the lead with 3.3 seconds left.

The Bulls, though, got the ball to Giddey with a little bit of a running start, and while James tried to contest the shot, it never looked off, the 47-foot dagger swishing through the basket. According to Basketball Reference, it’s the ninth-longest buzzer-beater in NBA history.

“It sucks,” Reaves said, his 30 points and potential winner not enough.

Luka Doncic had 25 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Hayes had 19 points and eight rebounds and James finished with 17 points, 12 assists and five rebounds.

Giddey had a triple-double with 25 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists as the Bulls (33-40) beat the Lakers for the second time in a week. White had 26 points and nine assists.

Instead of building momentum after the Pacers win, the Lakers (44-29) again seem headed for serious reflection. They play Saturday in Memphis, a possible first-round playoff matchup, before heading into the final two weeks of the season.

“At this point of the year, you just got to forget about it, honestly,” Reaves said. “There's so little basketball left.”

The NBA, like James said, demands you move on. But if this loss doesn’t leave a permanent scar on the Lakers, a bruise seems certain.

“You can't go into a game on Saturday thinking about what happened on Thursday,” James said.

But how do you forget this?

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Knicks are in.

After failing to clinch a playoff spot on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Clippers, the Miami Heat did New York a favor by defeating the Atlanta Hawks, 122-112, on Thursday night.

The Knicks are now guaranteed a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference, allowing them to avoid the play-in tournament.

Now, the next question is where the Knicks will be seeded. With 10 games to go, the Knicks (45-27) are the three-seed in the conference. The Cleveland Cavaliers (59-14) and the Boston Celtics (54-19) are too far ahead to catch, so the highest seed the Knicks can get is to remain at No. 3 but there are some interesting wrinkles forming for this team.

First, they are dealing with plenty of injuries especially at the point guard position. Jalen Brunson is still recovering from his ankle sprain, but he'll likely return before the end of the regular season. However, Miles McBride (groin) and Cam Payne (ankle) are also on the mend and will miss Friday's game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Without many experienced true point guards, the Knicks will have to find ways to fend off the fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers (43-30). Just three games separate the two teams.

Another factor is the Knicks' strength of schedule, which is the seventh-toughest according to Tankathon.

If the Knicks hold on to the No. 3 seed, and the other teams remain in the same positions, they'll face the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round with a date with the Celtics in round two.

Falling to the four-seed will put the Knicks on a collision course with the upstart Detroit Pistons before taking on the Cavaliers in round two.

Bulls' Josh Giddey sinks half-court buzzer to stun Lakers in frantic finish originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Josh Giddey made a halfcourt heave at the buzzer to cap perhaps the wildest finish in the NBA this season, giving the Chicago Bulls a 119-117 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.

Patrick Williams and Coby White hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the closing seconds for the Bulls, who trailed by five points with 12.6 seconds remaining.

Giddey finished with 25 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists. White scored 26 points and Kevin Huerter added 21 as the Bulls won for the ninth time in 11 games. And this one was easily their wildest in recent memory.

The Lakers looked like they had the game at hand leading 115-100 after Austin Reaves made two free throws with 13 seconds remaining. The Bulls weren’t finished, though.

Williams nailed a 3 for Chicago with 10 seconds remaining. Giddey stole a pass from James and White hit a 3 with 6 seconds to go, putting the Bulls on top 116-115.

Austin Reaves then drove for a layup to give Los Angeles a 117-116 lead with 3 seconds to go. But the Bulls still found a way to pull this one out, mobbing Giddey after he buried the winner.

Reaves led Los Angeles with 30 points. Luka Doncic had 25 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Jaxson Hayes scored 19, and James finished with 17 points and 12 assists.

Takeaways

Lakers: A night after winning at the buzzer in Indiana on James’ tip-in, the Lakers lost for the eighth time in 12 games.

Bulls: For a team that appeared to be out of it not too long ago, the Bulls are showing some fight.

Key moment

The Lakers led by double digits midway through the fourth quarter before the wild finish.

Key stat

White made five 3-pointers and Giddey hit four.

Up next

The Lakers wrap up a four-game trip Saturday at Memphis. The Bulls host Dallas that night.

LaVine, Kings showcase valiant effort in needed win vs. Blazers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

With 10 regular-season games remaining, on a four-game losing skid and an NBA playoff push beginning to fade, the Kings had to dig deep and respond. 

They did just that.

With every starter scoring in double digits, Sacramento propelled to a 128-107 win over the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday night at Golden 1 Center. 

Star guard Zach LaVine, who criticized the Kings’ locker room environment after Monday’s loss to the Boston Celtics, erupted for a game-high 29 points on 13-of-18 shooting from the floor. 

Zach LaJAM‼ pic.twitter.com/yhN3BPg2Vw

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) March 28, 2025

Unlike throughout the losing streak, Sacramento showcased a valiant effort on both ends of the floor and an urgency to win. As the most vital part of the regular season approaches, the expectation to fight is a non-negotiable for the Kings. 

“To that effort part, I think it’s a do-or-die situation,” LaVine told reporters. “If we’re not going to play with that effort, it might not fall our way.” 

As a team, the Kings shot nearly 65 percent from the floor while dominating points in the paint 60-32 over a young, versatile Blazers team. Center Domantas Sabonis recorded his 53rd double-double of the 2024-25 NBA season.

Can't stop the Domas-Deebo duo 🔥 pic.twitter.com/9M1KUBTU0a

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) March 28, 2025

Defensively, Sacramento outrebounded Portland 46-32. Guard Keon Ellis recorded a career-high six steals in 31 minutes of play. 

When the Kings play with the tenacity like they showcased Thursday, naturally, the chances of losing are slimmer. 

“So, at least playing that hard we are giving ourselves our best shot to go out there and compete at the highest level and give us a chance to play our best,” LaVine added.

“I think you attribute that to just wanting it more. These last 10 or nine, we’re going to have to play the same way.” 

At 36-37, Sacramento stands No. 9 in the Western Conference, sitting half a game ahead of the Dallas Mavericks and one ahead of the No. 11 seed Phoenix Suns. 

Although nine games separate the Kings from a possible postseason appearance, the immediate task at hand will be a challenge in and of itself for coach Doug Christie and Co.: Keep the foot on the effort pedal throughout the upcoming six-game road trip. 

It’s Sacramento’s pathway to playoff basketball.

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