Luka Doncic Drops 42 as Lakers Beat Heat 138-117

Luka Doncic just keeps doing it. One night after a 45-point game, the Lakers star put up 42 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds and buried six 3-pointers as Los Angeles ran past the Miami Heat 138-117 on Monday night at home, the AP reported.

That is five straight games of at least 37 points for Doncic, and four 40-point nights in that five-game stretch. The Lakers are 6-2. The Heat are 2-5 and opened a five-game West Coast trip with a loss.

Luka Doncic Owned the First Quarter Again

This is becoming a pattern. Doncic had 16 points, five assists and four rebounds in the first quarter alone. He is averaging 15.0 points in opening periods this season and has scored at least 13 in all but one of his seven games.

He had 24 by halftime, then scored nine more in the first four and a half minutes after the break to push the lead to 93-74. Miami never got close again. When Doncic sat to start the fourth, Austin Reaves kept the pressure on.

The numbers that matter:

• Doncic: 42 points, 13 assists on 14 of 24 shooting

• Doncic: 43.4 points per game over his last five

• Reaves: 27 points on 10 of 15 shooting

And remember, the Lakers played Friday and then had to hold off Toronto on Sunday night. Back-to-back, tired legs, none of it slowed Doncic down. Walker Kessler gave them a big night inside too, with 15 points and 15 rebounds.

Giannis Gets His Numbers, Heat Still Lose

Giannis Antetokounmpo did his part in his first trip to LA with Miami: 30 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. But he also turned it over seven times, and the Heat have now lost five of seven to start his first season in South Beach. Klay Thompson added 19 and Bam Adebayo had 16.

Miami had not played since Friday, so this was not a fatigue thing. The Lakers were just better and faster, and the 21-point final margin felt about right.

There was one fun moment for the visitors. Heat president Pat Riley got a big ovation from the Lakers crowd when he showed up on the scoreboard. The Lakers put up a statue of their Showtime-era coach outside the arena last season.

Lineup Notes

Ziaire Williams returned for the Lakers after missing three games with a foot injury, but Jake LaRavia kept the starting spot Williams used to hold. That is worth watching as the rotation settles.

Up Next: Kings Wednesday

The Lakers visit Sacramento on Wednesday night, and the Heat stay in town to face the Clippers that same night. Doncic is the defending scoring champ and is on a serious heater, so the Smacktok lean is higher on his points against the Kings. Five straight games of 37 or more is not a fluke, and Lakers fans know it.