Kyrie Irving helps Nets rally past shorthanded Lakers
Kyrie Irving #11 of the Nets works against Patrick Beverley #21 of the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Barclays Center on Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. Credit: Jim McIsaac
LeBron. KD. Kyrie.
Nets. Lakers.
It’s the kind of game that gets circled on the calendar by fans and ticket scalpers alike when the NBA schedule is announced.
Celebrities such as actors Selena Gomez and Michael B. Jordan and the Mets’ Jeff McNeil were among the sellout crowd.
Unfortunately, only one of those marquee players — Kyrie Irving — took the court on Monday night as the Nets hosted the Lakers at Barclays Center.
As an injured and inactive LeBron James munched on Nets-branded popcorn while wearing a snazzy sweater on the bench, the Nets won, 121-104.
The crusher for folks who spent hundreds or thousands of dollars to attend Monday’s clash was the announcement by the Lakers on Sunday that James would sit out with left ankle soreness.
The Lakers also were without Anthony Davis, who was resting a right foot stress injury that he returned from two games ago.
Irving had 26 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Cam Thomas and Patty Mills added 21 points each off the bench. Day’Ron Sharpe had a career-high 14 rebounds, also off the bench.
“It’s why I love team basketball,” coach Jacque Vaughn said about the bench scoring 66 points. “It’s doing your part. Not knowing when you’re going to be called on. We’ve been talking about that, trying to normalize that with our group, and next thing you know, you’re called upon.”
Thomas Bryant led the Lakers with 18 points. Russell Westbrook (17 points, 10 assists) moved into 10th place on the NBA’s all-time assist list with an assist in the second quarter.
The Nets led by double-digits 6½ minutes into the game and featured a 16-0 run in the first quarter. They led by as many as 19 in the second quarter.
The Lakers took the lead midway through the third. The Nets finished the quarter on a 10-0 run, had an 85-82 lead entering the fourth and won going away.
James, 38, played 44:13 and scored 41 points in the Lakers’ overtime loss in Boston on Saturday, and Los Angeles will face the Knicks on Tuesday. It’s possible James would rather play at the Garden than at Barclays if he’s going to play only one of the back-to-back games. He hasn’t played at MSG in three years.
However, Lakers coach Darvin Ham said James is experiencing “really significant soreness” in his left foot and will be evaluated Tuesday to see if he can play against the Knicks.
James needs 117 more points to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for No. 1 on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. James is averaging 30.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.1 assists. He is shooting 50.7% from the field and 31.2% from three-point range.
Both Vaughn and Ham played against James in the NBA.
Said Vaughn: “When you strip it down, you look at just the sheer number of years and the ability for him to produce, I’m not sure we see it again.”
The Lakers are 23-28, so James’ heroics have not propelled them to the heights he was hoping for as his career hits the back nine. But that doesn’t mean his peers aren’t impressed by what The King is doing.
“It’s inspiring to see,” Durant said on his “The ETCs with Kevin Durant” podcast. “As a competitor, it’s like . . . I can do that [expletive] too. But then it’s like, dang, he’s in Year 20, he’s 38 years old . . . Man, salute to that.”
Durant, out with a right knee sprain, said on his podcast that he hopes to return before the Feb. 19 All-Star Game. The Nets (31-19) are 4-6 in his absence.
“That would be a nice target point for me, I guess,” Durant said. “The few games before the [All-Star Game] to get my legs back under me. That’s in an ideal situation, then slide into the All-Star break back healthy, back on the floor.”
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
