Dorian Finney-Smith responded to Luka Dončić‘s threat with his best shooting performance since he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Finney-Smith scored a season-high 20 points on 6-of-11 3-point shooting as the Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 104-98 on Monday, March 31, for their second straight win.
“I just told him today, if you don’t want to shoot, I’ll shoot,” Dončić told reporters. “Honestly, you can ask him. I think he could have shot more. Three or four times he was open, he didn’t want to shoot it. It’s the only thing I told him. He knows how to tell.”
“Yeah, he kept telling me that,” Finney-Smith told reporters. “I’m always one to make the right read, so if I see anybody running at me, I’m gonna make the swing-swing and they’re like ‘Bro, you’re the hot player. Shoot the ball.’ It feels good when guys like him and LeBron [James] are telling me to shoot. It should be the other way around [expletive].”
Luka Dončić Loves Dorian Finney-Smith’s Unselfishness
Dončić ribbed Finney-Smith that he’s more aggressive shooting the ball during practice than in actual games.
“Yeah, but he talks [expletive] in practice when he shoots with me. So, I don’t know why he doesn’t do it in the game,” Doncic said of Finney-Smith. “But no, I mean, he’s a great player. Those are players you need on a team. Never complain. You can play 48 minutes, play zero, he’s never going to say a thing. And he’s a fighter, man. I always love him, I always love how he plays, and just happy to be reunited with him.”
Dončić and Finney-Smith have been close friends since they were teammates in Dallas. So when Dončić was shockingly traded to the Lakers for Anthony Davis, he was consoled by the fact he could play with Finney-Smith again.
Their great chemistry was on full display against the Rockets. Four of Finney-Smith’s season-high six 3-pointers came off a Dončić assist.
“Coach [JJ Redick] told us me and Gabe was going to have a bunch of looks because the [Rockets] packed the paint and the guys did a good job of finding us well,” Finney-Smith told Lakers sideline reporter Mike Trudell after the win.
Vincent also hit 6-of-13 3s en route to 20 points. Finney-Smith and Vincent combined for 12 of the Lakers’ 16 3-pointers in the low-scoring game. They picked up the slack as the Rockets’ defense focused on stopping the Lakers’ Big 3.
Dončić was held to only 20 points but he had nine assists and six rebounds. Austin Reaves added 12 points after his back-to-back 30-point games.
LeBron James Shines Defensively as Small-Ball Center
James sacrificed his offense, scoring only 16 points on 12 shots, to defend Houston’s All-Star big man Alperen Sengun.
James held Sengun to 1-of-4 shooting as his primary defender. The Turkish center was held to only 14 points on 5-of-11 overall shooting.
“I thought defensively, we were very locked in with our game plan and what we wanted to do,” James told reporters after the crucial win.
The Lakers improved to 46-29 gained a two-game lead over the fifth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies (44-31) and pulled one game back of the third-seeded Denver Nuggets (47-28) going into the homestretch.
“Obviously our mission is to lock in a playoff spot and not have to play in the play-in [tournament] so we understand what’s at stake,” James added.
Up next for the Lakers on Thursday, April 3, are the Golden State Warriors, who can move up to fifth seed with a win over the Grizzlies on Tuesday, April 1.
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