The fourth quarter magic of Isaiah Thomas was once again dazzling the Lakers and fans alike (38 points in entire game), but it was about the full team effort, including Marcus Smart and Al Horford down the stretch.
This 113-107 win tonight marks the 3,253rd win in team history, which now currently surpasses the Lakers 3,252 wins as the league leader in franchise wins. This is the first time in 16 years Boston is now able to lead Los Angeles in franchise wins.
Consistent play was not shown throughout the entire game tonight, but when it mattered most in the fourth quarter, Isaiah Thomas and company delivered and gave the Lakers another loss. We all know the importance of Isaiah and what he does on a nightly basis, especially with All-Star caliber guard Avery Bradley nursing an Achilles injury. Other key factors such as Horford, who was on the brink of a triple double (11 points 8 boards 8 assists), Crowder (18 points), Smart (9 points) and Brown (12 points) contributed in different ways, but got the job done of wiping out the Lakers and moving on to have a firm stance in the Eastern Conference.
Los Angeles is the team that loves to shoot the ball, and we saw this with high school phenom Louis Williams showcasing yet again how critical he is for this team off the bench. Dropping 21 points and trying to spark a comeback with D’Angelo Russell knocking down some late 3’s to keep the C’s on edge, it was unfortunately too late and the C’ put them away for their 6th straight win.
With Toronto losing against Orlando, this scenario set up the opportunity for Brad Stevens and his coaching staff to now be the official coaching roster of the Eastern Conference once the All Star Game comes around shortly. Stevens noted with the pregame interview with Mike Gorman that he has not focused on the potential of coaching All-Stars, but now he is the official head coach, so congratulations to Coach Stevens and the crew.
Next game: Sunday vs Clippers
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