The Lakers were able to pull out a win over the Pelicans despite turnover issues

Under normal circumstances, the Lakers would not have played a competitive game against the Pelicans on Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena.

Because most seasons, a team like the Pelicans, who entered the game with the sixth-worst record in the league, would be saddled with hopes of falling down the standings to secure the best possible lottery odds.

But this season has been anything but typical, as the Pelicans, who have won six of their last nine games entering Tuesday, still look to be competitive in light of waiving their 2026 first-round pick during a highly-vetted trade that took them to the 2025 draft to select rookie big man Derrick Quinn at No. 13.

So the Lakers had to fight until the end to earn a 110-101 win over the Pelicans, who were able to survive due to the Lakers’ poor ball security.

Luka Doncic He led the Lakers with 24 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists. LeBron James He scored 21 points, seven assists and seven rebounds.

What does it mean

Lakers on The third of three consecutive matches Since December.

They moved to 37-24 this season, and are close to achieving a similar home record (18-12) as their road record (19-12).

turning point

When Austin Reaves, who struggled with his shooting most of Tuesday (15 points on 4-of-15 shooting), hit a 3-pointer with 5:04 left to give the Lakers a 96-94 lead.

The Lakers led for the remainder of the game.

MVP: Marcus Smart

His 3-of-9 shooting doesn’t stand out.

But the veteran guard scored 3 points to give the Lakers a 105-98 lead with 1:34 minutes left in the game.

He made several game-changing defensive plays that ignited the Lakers’ offense.

Smart finished with 10 points, seven assists, four steals and three rebounds, and had the best individual plus/minus among rookies.

Match stats: 22

That was the number of turnovers the Lakers committed against the Pelicans.

It was the 11th time they’ve had at least 20 turnovers, with the Lakers entering Tuesday 4-6 in games in which they’ve had at least 20 turnovers.

It is worth noting that this is only the third time that the Lakers have achieved at least 20 turnovers in a game played by Doncic, LeBron and Reeves, the most recent of which was the February 5 win over the 76ers, which Doncic left at halftime.

The Dec. 1 loss to the Suns was the last time the Lakers had 20 turnovers in a game finished by all three star players.

the next

The Lakers will start their next matchup in Denver when they take on the Nuggets on Thursday night at Ball Arena.

They will close out the back-to-back on Friday against the Pacers at crypto.com Arena, which will begin a five-game homestand.