Luka Dončić (31 Points), Austin Reaves (22) Help Shorthanded LAKERS CRUSH Shorthanded Nuggets, 120-108

The juice was taken out of Wednesday's tilt against the visiting Denver Nuggets when it was announced that Nuggets stars Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, both nursing injuries, wouldn't play. (The Lakers were without LeBron James and Rui Hachimura, but had Luka Dončić in the lineup.) So while that meant that the results wouldn't have a whole lot of head-to-head meaning—continuing the trend of last week's game in Denver, where the Lakers were without... basically everyone in their rotation—it turned the game into a prime opportunity for the Lakers to pick up a game in the standings, put themselves in position to win the season tiebreaker against the Nuggets (no small thing) and take some pressure off Thursday's game against Milwaukee at the Crypt. Man alive, did they take advantage. Led by Dončić, the Lakers had arguably their best opening quarter of the season, hitting nine 3-pointers en route to 46 points. Luka had 21 on his own. In the second, the Lakers turned up the defensive pressure and built the lead as high as 28. The rest wasn't uniformly good. The Lakers went to sleep at the end of the first half, letting Denver get back to within 14. But by the end of the third, the Lakers were back up big, and were able to cruise with Luka in cruise control—and then back on the bench early. The Lakers have now won nine straight at home, and despite key injuries have kept themselves squarely in the race for a top four finish and a chance to host a first round playoff series. It's a fantastic turn since a four game losing streak had everyone on edge, not so much wondering if the team would be good enough to compete when healthy, but how much damage would be done while the Lakers waited for that health to come. With LeBron and Rui getting closer to a return, there's no question a 2-seed is still in play, something that seemed like a long shot when James got hurt. One thing that's helped turn things around? Getting some players back, obviously, but also the trend of hot starts. It can't be overstated how much easier it is to play from ahead. Basically any NBA opponent, assuming they don't just decide to quit, will make a run or two during a game. Denver made a few. But it's a lot easier to absorb a 10-0 run when it starts while you're up by 10- or 20-plus points. It's something to watch for down the stretch, but for a team that, for a time, seemed to struggle early in games, this is a welcome shift. If it continues? Just one more sign the Lakers are right and truly legitimate title contenders. HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky SEGMENT 1: Luka and the Lakers use hot start to control the Nuggets. SEGMENT 2: LeBron and Rui day-to-day, but the team has adjusted well. SEGMENT 3: Finishing off the back-to-back? Your favorite podcast now has a newsletter! In One-stop for ultimate team and league coverage delivered right to your in box. Sign up for free now, at lockedondaily.com . 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