LOS ANGELES — After a lifeless performance on Sunday night, the Lakers needed some kind of sign to show they’re still kicking.

On Tuesday night against the Dallas Mavericks, they ran the floor. They defended. They scored. A crowd that had booed them two nights before got back on their side as they led by six points midway through the fourth quarter against a credible opponent.

But that brief surge was bested by the cold, methodical approach of Luka Doncic, who moved the Lakers’ defense like chess pieces and whose stepback jump shot simply had no counter.

The Lakers (27-34) might have a pulse. But they’re still in need of a win after falling to the Mavericks, 109-104, their third straight loss since the All-Star Break. The ninth-place Lakers are just two games from falling out of the play-in tournament entirely and have lost 10 of their last 13 games.

Doncic (25 points) and Jalen Brunson (22 points) helped pull the Mavericks past the Lakers despite a third quarter in which the Lakers outscored them 31-14, making it seem possible that the hosts might just snap their losing streak.

But in the end, they were snuffed by a team that – the last they saw them – they had beaten with an overtime game-winner. The Mavericks held them to just four points over the last 7:35 of the fourth quarter this time, with former Lakers assistant Jason Kidd showing them how to close on defense during crunch-time.

LeBron James scored a game-high 26 points, perking up the crowd with a 9-for-14 start from the field, but he, too, struggled at the wrong time, making only one shot during that cold fourth-quarter stretch – a dunk with 13.3 seconds left, after the game was all but decided. He missed two shots and gave up a turnover in the final 2:35 as Doncic was closing up shop.

Carmelo Anthony added 20 points off the bench, helping lead the Lakers’ 14-for-34 shooting effort from 3-point range. Malik Monk had 17 points and Russell Westbrook had 12, but the two starting guards combined to shoot just 10 for 31 from the field.

“Just gotta be better overall,” said Westbrook, pounding his fist against the postgame podium while glaring at the stat sheet. “What I’m doing now ain’t good enough.”

After a 28-point loss to New Orleans on Sunday night, the Lakers had hit a new low, being loudly booed for most of the second half. For the first half against Dallas, it looked like their follow-up might be going the same way: The Lakers trailed by as much as 21 points in the second quarter, with a disjointed offense and weakly contested close-outs on defense.

Another dead-in-the-water night suddenly changed direction during a stint led by James, who led a 26-9 run in his third-quarter shift. His recently cold 3-ball warmed up as he hit three in the third quarter alone – most notably a shot from the “s” of the Lakers’ midcourt logo that livened up Crypto.com Arena. When he subbed out with the Lakers ahead 82-80 after entering halftime with a 15-point deficit, James collapsed onto the bench with a smile, as injured big man Anthony Davis (clad in street clothes) lauded him.

But the Lakers’ best attribute in that period was defense: The Mavericks shot just 6 for 19 in the third while coughing up seven turnovers to allow the Lakers to turn the tide.

The surest sign that some of the frost had melted away came in the fourth, when James was matched up against Dallas’ Reggie Bullock. The 17,857 fans cooed in anticipation, and James obliged with a 3-pointer in his face.

The Lakers have their next chance to end their slide on Thursday night against the Clippers, who they are 0-3 against this season.

More to come on this story.

Related Articles