LOS ANGELES — The Lakers entered a critical six-game stretch Saturday that could very well determine their playoff position in the competitive Western Conference postseason race. Behind the heroics of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, the Lakers defeated the Nuggets in a thrilling 127-125 win at Crypto.com Arena that secured a playoff seeding tiebreaker over the Nuggets. Doncic made an 18-foot jumper with less than a second left in overtime to secure the win. While he’ll get a lot of the credit for the outcome, the play of Austin Reaves, Deande Ayton and Marcus Smart in overtime also played a critical role. He made his first free throw with 5.2 seconds remaining, leaving the Lakers down by one point.

Source: Los Angeles Times March 15, 2026 04:48 UTC