live
Updated 3m ago
The Lakers advance to face the Denver Nuggets, but the big story is Zion Williamson limping off late after a 40-point performance.
Jovan Buha and William Guillory
Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images
The Athletic NBA Staff
Zion Williamson looked unstoppable during Tuesday's Play-In Tournament opener against the Los Angeles Lakers — a 110-106 loss — until the New Orleans Pelicans star's monster night ended early. He exited in the final minutes of the matchup with what Pelicans coach Willie Green later described as left leg soreness.
After the game, Williamson walked out of Smoothie King Center without any apparent mobility issues. He didn't have a visible wrap on his leg either.
Green said Williamson will get imaging on his leg Wednesday. Green added that he didn't see if it was a knee or a foot Williamson injured.
Anthony Davis said he was affected by his back spasms in tonight's game. He thinks it affected his ability to make shots around the basket and move in general.
However, he said he expects to be 100 percent by Game 1 in Denver on Saturday.
Advertisem*nt
Zion Williamson just left the Smoothie King Center and wasn't walking with a limp or anything. He didn't have a visible wrap on his leg, either.
Darvin Ham said anyone saying the Lakers should intentionally lose to duck the Nuggets in the first round is "just someone that got out of the insane asylum."
Fun fact: The Lakers are the No. 7 seed after being eighth or lower in the West every day from Dec. 15 until the end of the regular season.
One of many sad footnotes to Zion Williamson's injury: His 40-point game in his postseason debut — the biggest moment of his basketball life — will be relegated to the ether because Play-In Tournament stats are not considered playoff or regular-season stats. So it'll be as if the performance never happened.
(OK, maybe a bit dramatic, but still.)
Lakers-Nuggets Part II is on the way
Stephen Lew / USA Today
This was a spirited win for the Lakers, who staved off the Pelicans' second-half rally to secure the No. 7 seed and advance to face the No. 2 Denver Nuggets in a rematch of last season's Western Conference finals. The Lakers will certainly be heavy underdogs entering the series, but they're confident that their new starting lineup and high-powered offense will give them a chance to defeat the defending champions. The obvious challenge will be solving Denver's crunch-time offense, which has shredded the Lakers over the past calendar year. Denver has won eight straight games against the Lakers entering Game 1 on Saturday.
GO FURTHERLeBron James, Lakers hold off Pelicans in Play-In Tournament, will face Nuggets in first roundAdvertisem*nt
Pelicans coach Willie Green calls Zion Williamson's injury "left leg soreness" and he'll get imaging on it tomorrow.
Green said he didn't see if it was a knee or a foot Zion injured.
This 110-106 loss to the Lakers was a heartbreaking end for the Pelicans on a night when it seemed Zion Williamson was on the verge of quieting all his critics. He finishes with 40 points, 11 rebounds and five assists before leaving the game with 3:13 left in the fourth quarter due to an undisclosed injury. As if losing this game wasn't bad enough, now the Pels need to hope he'll be healthy enough to play on Friday with the season on the line.
Final: Lakers 110, Pelicans 106
Zion Williamson's injury late in the fourth quarter spoils what could've been an epic comeback for the Pels. They will play winner of Warriors/Kings in a do-or-die game on Friday.
Basketball can be cruel. This is cruel for Zion Williamson and for the Pelicans. He’s been terrific this season for, basically, a 50-win team. Now, New Orleans will have to hold its breath for a couple of days to see if it gets its superstar back for a win or go-home game Friday against the Warriors-Kings winner. And, also: how do the Pels handle their decision to keep Brandon Ingram on the bench down the stretch? How does he handle it?
The Pelicans forced LeBron James into an air ball, but Anthony Davis, having a rough game, leaped to snag the rebound and draw a foul. His two clutch free throws give the Lakers a 106-102 lead with 14.8 seconds left.
Advertisem*nt
TNT's Allie LaForce reports that Pelicans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin has gone back into the tunnel to check on Zion Williamson. There is still no update on his status.
D'Angelo Russell drills the open 3 from the left corner and the Lakers go up by 4, 104-100, with 50.3 seconds left. Huge shot from DLo.
Zion Williamson just slammed a towel and walked to the locker room. Not sure what happened. Obviously, a massive moment in this game.
The Lakers call timeout after that Zion Williamson bucket. He's up to 40. The game is tied 95-95 with 3:13 left. LA has looked gassed these last few minutes. The offense has stagnated. The Pelicans' trapping and swarming has disrupted their flow.
This is unreal. Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, the Pelicans' two most experienced high-level scorers, are on the bench while Zion Williamson, Herb Jones and three bench players zip the Pelicans back into this game. At some point, the Lakers need to run some real offense, right?
Advertisem*nt
The Zion Williamson "postseason" debut has been everything you could've asked for. He's been incredible tonight.
What a block by Zion Williamson! In the first half, he got LeBron James with a block and then tried to go to the other end to complete the end-to-end play. He missed the lay-in and it led to a dunk for James on the other end.
This time, Williamson got the block, got the ball back and found Jose Alvarado for a triple. Huge play and the Pelicans are back in this thing.
The Lakers' offense has gone into prevent mode way too early. A lot of isolation and standing around in an attempt to control the tempo, yet all it's done is give New Orleans repeated chances to score on the secondary break. If the non-Trey Murphy Pelicans could hit a shot, this would be even closer. The Lakers really need to get their flow back.
Load more updates
