The Lakers (and Westbrook!) Get a Big Overtime Win vs. Knicks, LeBron Now 4th All-Time in Assists

By electing to sit both Anthony Davis and LeBron James Monday in Brooklyn, the Lakers were essentially putting all their eggs in Tuesday's basket, turning their game against the Knicks into a must-win type game. And win they did, though it wasn't easy. (It never is.) 129-123 was the final score, as the Lakers topped the Knicks in overtime behind 28/10/11 from James, 27/9 from Davis, 19 points from Rui Hachimura (who started, more on that later) and 17/8 from Russell Westbrook. Westbrook, it should be noted, was both a significant contributor to a bad stretch of play in the last few minutes after LA built a 6-point lead with about 90 seconds left-- making him a large reason they went to overtime -- and arguably the team's best player once they got there. He was great at times, he was awful at times, and as it always seems to be with Westbrook, there just wasn't a whole lot of normal stuff in between. There never is much normal in between, which is one reason Westbrook can be so difficult to blend in with a team. There are times when what he's doing works well, and helps the Lakers. There are other times (too many) when it's the opposite. But in all cases, he's rarely mixing and blending with the rest of the group in any cohesive way. So what does Ham do? Well, on Tuesday, he was short a lot of options. He did, however, change up the starting lineup, with Patrick Beverley on the sidelines, inserting Hachimura in and then running with LBJ, AD, Schroder and Troy Brown. While it's very possible Ham goes back to Patrick Beverley when he's healthy... here's hoping he doesn't, because this is a lineup that would make sense going forward. And what happens when Austin Reaves comes back? What kind of opening and closing lineups does Ham deploy at that point? Finally, in the second half Tuesday LeBron passed both Mark Jackson and Steve Nash to move into fourth all time on the assists list. For as much attention as has been given to James passing Kareem on the all time scoring list (coming in the next few games), this is about as remarkable an achievement. To be this high on both lists? That's bonkers. The level of consistency James has shown through his career is stunning, and almost numbing. But don't let yourself not appreciate it. HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky SEGMENT 1: The Lakers score a huge win in New York, and had to earn it to say the least. SEGMENT 2: Darvin Ham changes the starting lineup out of necessity. Will he roll with it going forward? SEGMENT 3: LeBron passes Jackson and Nash, underscoring how incredible, and consistent, his career has been. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order. PrizePicks First time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDON LinkedIn LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNBA TurboTax Come to TurboTax and don’t do your taxes. Visit TurboTax.com to learn more. FanDuel Make Every Moment More. Place your first FIVE DOLLAR bet to get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in Free Bets – win or lose! Visit Fanduel.com/LockedOn today to get started FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices