The Los Angeles Lakers might not need LeBron James to beat the Milwaukee Bucks.
Okay, maybe that's a bit of a stretch, but so far it's proven true.
A little over two weeks ago on March 8, the Lakers stunned the Bucks 123-122 without "The King," thanks to a career-high 44 points from D'Angelo Russell.
At the time, many called it the best win of the season for the purple and gold, but maybe we were too quick to jump to that conclusion.
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The Lakers did it again on Tuesday night, this time at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee with an epic comeback in a 128-124 double-overtime thriller against the 2021 NBA Champion Bucks.
James missed the matchup with Milwaukee again with a lingering left ankle injury. In his place, several players stepped up for the Lakers.
Anthony Davis went toe-to-toe with two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, finishing with a game-high 34 points and 23 rebounds. He also had three from beyond the arc and four blocks.
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Antetokounmpo was no slouch either. The "Greek Freak" finished with a triple-double, recording 29 points, 21 rebounds, and 11 assists.
The Lakers trailed by as many as 19 points in the fourth quarter, but mounted a comeback late in the game. With the score tied at 102-102, Davis' defense stopped the Bucks to send the game into overtime.
Davis did it again in the first overtime. He drained his third three-pointer of the contest and blocked a would-be-game winner from Damian Lillard as time expired.
Both teams seemed gassed in the second overtime, but Austin Reaves revived the exhausted Lakers, hitting a go-ahead three-pointer and two free throws to secure the victory. Davis finished with a career-high 52 minutes.
Reaves finished with a triple-double as well, recording 29 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists. Russell had 29 points and 12 assists in the victory that improves the Lakers record to 6-4 without LeBron in the lineup this season.
Rui Hachimura also stepped up in LeBron's absence, scoring 16 points to go with 14 rebounds.
Former Laker Malik Beasley finished with 21 points in the loss for the Bucks.
The Lakers improved to 40-32 on the season and have won four straight. However, in a loaded Western Conference, they still find themselves in the 9th spot, needing to win two winner-take-all in-season tournament games just to reach the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The Lakers will next take the court on Wednesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies. We'll see if the exhaustion of Tuesday night's victory against Milwaukee plays a part in the game.
