LOS ANGELES – Luka Dončić had started and finished one of the most exhilarating plays of the night – grabbing a defensive rebound, firing the ball ahead to teammate Austin Reaves, then racing up the floor to take Reaves’ pass for a dunk and a foul shot.

That put the Los Angeles Lakers up by 25, 126-101, with 5:23 to go. It also got Dončić to 48 points, so with the margin and the clock on their side, Lakers coach JJ Redick decided to play with the game a little.

Sure, Luka, go for 50. The world loves big round numbers.

Problem was, Dončić – who got pretty much everything else done Friday night at Crypto.com Arena – didn’t hit that stat target. He launched a 3-pointer from 35 feet that missed. He botched a layup. He passed up a shot.

Redick had gone so deep to his bench with barely

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