Bizarrely, in way that only makes sense for its consistency with the Lakers’ season-long proclivity for perverting the expectations of the fanbase and themselves with shockingly putrid results, the team reversed course to conclude its season-long train-wreck with a rare display of beautiful basketball. Without LeBron, AD, Melo, or Russ in the lineup for the team’s final three games, the vast majority of the playmaking burden fell upon the youth movement, opening the door for the Arkansas boys to put a bow on the steaming turd that was the 2021-22 Lakers season.
Veteran’s minimum signing Malik Monk exploded for 18 of his career-high 41 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Lakers rally back from being down 13 at the start of the period to force more basketball.