LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic’s hot starts to games aren’t surprising.

Entering Sunday as the league’s leading scorer in the first quarter with 12.3 points, it’s almost become customary for Doncic to do heavy lifting for the Lakers to start games.

And Doncic’s strong start against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday night at Crypto.com Arena gave the Lakers the boost they needed, with the Lakers beating the Pelicans 133-121 for their seventh-straight victory.

With LeBron James (left foot injury management) not available for the first game of the Lakers’ home back-to-back set, with the team hosting the Phoenix Suns on Monday night, Doncic (34 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists) paced the Lakers (15-4) early on, recording 20 points of his scoring total in the opening quarter.

Austin Reaves

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