Doncic added nine rebounds and seven assists, while committing six turnovers. He scored 10 points in the opening quarter, then produced 13 in the second, 12 in the third and five in the fourth. His 40-point performance followed two other outings of at least 40 points.

The game began unevenly, with frequent whistles affecting both teams. Each side was called for 12 fouls before halftime. Los Angeles was assessed nine fouls in the second quarter, while Sacramento had eight, and the Lakers put the Kings in the bonus with 9:24 remaining in that period.

Jake LaRavia collected his fourth foul with 8:02 left in the second quarter. Despite the interruptions, Doncic helped the Lakers take control late in the half, scoring 13 of the team’s final 15 points before the break. He had 23 points at halftime.

Walker Kessler contributed 15 points on 6-for-8 shooting, along with eight rebounds and three blocks. Austin Reaves finished with 21 points for the Lakers.

Sacramento entered the contest at 1-6, a record shared by six NBA teams at the time. The Kings had allowed 124.3 points per game, the league’s second-highest figure, while opponents were shooting a league-high 50.5% against them.

The Lakers came into the game with the NBA’s second-highest scoring average at 122.5 points per game and the league’s best field-goal percentage at 52.0%. Doncic also entered as the league’s leading scorer at 38.3 points per game and ranked third in assists at 8.1 per game.

Kings rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr. scored 14 points in the first half and finished with 22. Acuff entered the game ranked eighth in the NBA in scoring at 26.1 points per game.

Lakers coach JJ Redick said Doncic’s influence this season has included a growing leadership role within the team.

“Well, you brought up the leadership,” Redick said. “I think that’s where I’ve seen a lot of growth from him. Talking to his teammates…. We like to give that first minute to the players just to kind of talk to each other. And we’ve seen a lot of back and forth and it’s been really healthy. So I love that from our team and from Luka. He’s leading that right now.”

Redick also said Lakers forward Adou Thiero practiced with the Coachella Valley Lakers on Wednesday as he continues to recover from a left knee injury.

“Yeah, practice was fine today,” Redick said. “Went well. That was the plan just to get him a live practice today and then he’ll be back with us.”

Source: Los Angeles Times