The Lakers had this one. They led 115-110 with 12.6 seconds left until a Patrick Williams 3-pointer had the Bulls down just two. Then Chicago stole the inbounds pass, Coby White drained another three, and Chicago led 116-115 with 6.1 remaining.
Austin Reaves drove the rim and hit a layup to put the Lakers back in front 117-116 with just 3.3 seconds to go, and the Bulls had no time outs. Then Josh Giddey did this.
Giddey felt good about the shot.
Josh Giddey: “As soon as it left my fingertips, it looked good. That’s kind of why I held my follow through the whole time. I had that feeling. It looked straight. It felt good. Special night. Comeback win. It was a helluva team effort. We’ll enjoy this one.”
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) March 28, 2025
Coming a night after the Lakers won a game on a LeBron James tip-in at the buzzer, this loss was “devastation” for the Lakers, according to coach J.J. Redick. The Lakers dominated the third quarter and led by as many as 18 in the fourth quarter, but on the second night of a back-to-back seemed to lose steam late. Reaves led the Lakers with 30 points, while Luka Doncic had 25 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.
The Bulls also got hot late, shooting 11-of-14 on 3-pointers in the fourth. Giddey finished with a triple-double of 25 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists. Coby White scored 26 for Chicago.
The loss drops the Lakers into a tie with Memphis for the 4/5 seeds and a shot at home court in the first round of the West playoffs. The Lakers are 1.5 games behind Denver for third but also just 2.5 games ahead of the surging Clippers with nine games left to play.
