Lakers snap 3-game skid, run away from Warriors behind Luka Doncic and LeBron James

SAN FRANCISCO — As LeBron James conducted his pregame dribbling routine at the Chase Center, the sparse but rapidly-filling crowd ooh’d and aah’d over the scene on display.

Not for the 41-year-old Lakers star, who is an enigma of stardom and longevity, and bridged the free-flowing energy into their 129-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night. They were watching his daughter Zhuri, 11, as she mimicked her father’s warmup behind him.

James turned to look at his youngest child, smiling as he watched her dribble – and continued his warmup. These are the moments James relishes, in his 23rd season, making new memories – one of his children, Lakers guard Bronny James, often on the bench, another in San Francisco on Saturday, watching the Lakers away from home.

“It’s special,” James said. “It’s definitely softened me up over the last 11 years. I had two boys to begin with it, but getting a little girl 11 years ago, man, (it) has definitely softened me up. It’s special to have her.”

Zhuri tossed a pre-game alley oop to James, perfectly placed above the rim for her dad to slam home with two hands. Little did James know, Zhuri – on her first-ever road trip, tagging along and visiting sites such as Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge – would be the first of many to set up a Lakers’ basket Saturday.

“Miss a lot of moments spending time with my kids because of my career, and anytime I get, over the course of my career, anytime I got moments with them, either individually, two of them, three of them, all together, whatever the case may be, is always special for me,” James said.

Aptly, James coined his daughter, who he said will stick to volleyball, despite her dribble moves, the Lakers’ “good luck charm.”

Shooting 53.3% as a team – and 46.3% (19 for 41, tying their most in a game this season) from 3-point range – the Lakers (35-24) controlled every aspect of Saturday’s game to snap the three-game skid. Luka Doncic, on his 27th birthday, led the Lakers in scoring, tallying 16 of his 26-total points in the second half. Austin Reaves shook off a 5-for-12 shooting performance against Phoenix on Thursday to sink seven of 11 of his shots for 17 points against the Warriors.

James, who has been the Lakers’ worst 3-point shooter across their last 10 games (19.5% from beyond the arc), started to find his groove from long range as the Lakers extended their lead to as many as 24 points in the first half – which continued to grow as high as 32 – en route to 22 points, making four of his six looks from 3.

“I’m comfortable in every shot I take,” James said. “I can shoot 0.0% from the 3-point line. I believe I’ll make the next one.”

The four-time MVP sank a 25-footer from the top of the key for an 8-2 lead, drilled an unassisted 3 from the left wing to make it 20-7 and sank a step-back from near the corner to place the Lakers ahead by 19 before assisting a 3-pointer for guard Marcus Smart to grab a 46-22 advantage with 8:33 remaining in the second quarter.

At the third quarter’s end, the Lakers led 99-72 in front of the sell-out crowd, their largest lead entering the fourth quarter all season. The 28-point victory was the Lakers’ second-largest of the season.

“It was definitely our most complete game post All-Star break,” Lakers Coach JJ Redick said.

“It was just making the right play in front of us. I thought our starters really set the tone with that. And boy, Luke Kennard just, he just starts the blender for us.“

Kennard scored 16 points, his most since joining the Lakers at the trade deadline – and since Jan. 21 when he scored 21 points for the Atlanta Hawks in a victory over Memphis.

Jake LaRavia, who recorded 15 points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal off the bench in 27 minutes, said that Kennard’s “high IQ” is something he first noticed when he suited up alongside his new Lakers teammate in Memphis from 2022-2025. Kennard, 29, said he’s relishing his new role in Los Angeles, stripping the spot shooter identity for the ‘blender,’ that Redick said he brings to the Lakers.

“I love it. I mean, I think, you know, it kind of gives confidence in me,” Kennard said. “If two guys are on Luka or Bron or Austin, and I get a swing pass, if I don’t have a shot, I can get them to paint and try to make a play. I pride myself in that trying to make the right play every single time.”

Since the All-Star break, the Golden State Warriors (31-29) have attempted the most 3-pointers in the league – and lead the NBA in assist rate, averaging 33.8 assists per game despite Stephen Curry still being sidelined with patella-femoral pain syndrome (otherwise known as runner’s knee) since Jan. 30.

Without Curry – the 37-year-old, 12-time All-Star available – the Warriors have now stumbled through a 4-6 record over their last 10 games. Across that span, guard Moses Moody has helped Golden State pick up the pieces offensively; the 6-foot-3 shooting guard has fired off nearly eight 3-pointers per game to a 40.8% clip entering the game, averaging a team-high 16.3 points per game.

Moody, as with many of his teammates Saturday, appeared persona non grata compared to the Lakers. Warriors forward Gui Santos led Golden State with 14 points, while Moody recorded 12 points, sinking four of his 12 attempts from 3, while Golden State shot a dire 12 for 44 from long range in defeat.

“It was a night where they totally outplayed us,” Warriors Coach Steve Kerr said.

At the end of the day, ahead of a back-to-back playing Sacramento in Los Angeles on Sunday night, Reaves viewed Saturday’s victory as a simple solution to the Lakers’ slump.

“Winning’s fun,” he said. “Winning cures a lot of issues, so any time you can get a win is good.”