The Lakers eked out a 127-120 win over the Kings, but it was far from easy. With key players sidelined, every minute on the court felt like a battle. Fans were already reeling from LeBron James ’ absence due to a sciatic injury, and things got worse when Luka Dončić went down with a sprained finger and lower leg contusion. To make matters even tougher, Marcus Smart got injured, followed by Gabe Vincent dealing with an ankle issue. But in the midst of all the Lakers’ injury troubles, one star emerged bright: Austin Reaves.

Reaves dropped a career-high 51 points, almost flirting with a triple-double, to lead LA to victory even without Luka Dončić . When asked in the post-game press conference about missing out on the triple-double, Reaves laughed it off, joking, “I thought Jake [La

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