Jake LaRavia could help Lakers down former Grizzlies teammates again

Two nights after the Los Angeles Lakers used a late surge to get past the visiting Memphis Grizzlies, the teams will run it back again Sunday at Los Angeles.

The Lakers were led by their stars, with Luka Doncic scoring 34 points and LeBron James adding 31. They also received a key contribution from Jake LaRavia, who turned a chance to start into a 21-point, nine-rebound performance against his former team.

LaRavia's fifth game played with at least 37 minutes this season came as he started with both Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves out with calf injuries. Marcus Smart also started and added 13 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

"It started with Jake; he was locked in from the beginning," James said. "Marcus on both ends of the floor, obviously taking the challenge of guarding Ja (Morant). Those two guys set the tone for us. We needed it."

LaRavia began his career with the Grizzlies in 2022-23 and made just six starts in 117 games for Memphis over parts of three seasons. He has started 11 of 32 games in his first season with the Lakers.

"I got going pretty early and the ball was finding me," said LaRavia, who was 8 of 12 from the floor and 3 of 6 from 3-point range. "I was able to get going and stay aggressive and I finally knocked down some shots, so that felt good. I have to continue to trust my shot."

The Lakers are working to recover from their toughest stretch of the season, with four losses in five games to finish the calendar year.

The Grizzlies are currently in a slump with a three-game losing streak, their longest since a five-game skid in mid-November.

Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 25 points on 12-of-15 shooting, while former Laker Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 20 points. Morant scored 16 points with 11 assists while starting in his fourth consecutive game. It is his longest stretch of games since five consecutive from Nov. 3-11.

"Overall, shot quality was a little too high for the Lakers," Grizzlies head coach Tuomas Iisalo said. "I was happy that we were able to force turnovers and generate transition baskets that way."

The Grizzlies forced 20 Lakers turnovers that they turned into 27 points. It was the second consecutive game Los Angeles had at least 20 turnovers.

Jackson committed his fifth foul with 1:27 remaining in the third quarter and played more than eight minutes in the fourth while tentative on defense. In the end, Memphis was unable to prevent a late 12-2 Los Angeles run and trailed 121-112 with 1:57 on the clock.

Included in that Los Angeles burst was a 3-pointer from LaRavia with 2:26 remaining.

"They made a couple of shots. There was a huge (3-pointer) from LaRavia at the end of the shot clock, for example," Iisalo said. "I thought we got some good looks but couldn't convert in that situation and that, a lot of times, is the difference."

Following Sunday's game, Memphis returns home for a run of four consecutive home games and seven of nine at home through Jan. 25.