Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves' Chemistry Impresses NBA Fans As Lakers Beat T-Wolves Without LeBron

With LeBron James missing his third straight game due to an elbow injury, the chemistry between Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves was on full display Tuesday night during the Los Angeles Lakers' 120-106 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Dončić recorded his seventh triple-double of the season with 31 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in 35 minutes. Reaves had his best scoring game since Feb. 5 with 31 points on 10-of-20 shooting in 38 minutes.

Timberwolves-Lakers Full Highlights

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Reaves shook off a slow start by putting up 29 points in the second half. The game was tied at 45 going into halftime. The Lakers outscored Minnesota 39-23 in the third to take control of things, with Reaves and Dončić combining to score 30 of those points.

The Lakers have won each of their last three games without James, with the last two wins against the Timberwolves and New York Knicks. This comes on the heels of a 5-5 record in their previous 10 games.

Fans were hyped to see the pairing of Dončić and Reaves lead the offense in a big win over a good Timberwolves team.

There has been a growing narrative based on statistical information that the Lakers with Dončić and Reaves but not James are a better team.

In the 742 minutes the Lakers have played with Dončić and Reaves on the court, their net rating is 6.0. The net rating for James with Dončić is minus-3.1 in 855 minutes. James and Reaves have a net rating of minus-1.7 in 532 minutes.

It will be fascinating to see how head coach JJ Redick handles things looking ahead to the playoffs. The Lakers (40-25) are currently the No. 4 seed in the West. They have swept the three-game regular-season series against the Timberwolves, who eliminated them from the playoffs in the first round last season.

Los Angeles has moved within one game in the loss column of the Houston Rockets for the three seed. Those two teams have back-to-back games in Houston coming up on March 16 and 18.

The Lakers have two more games on this homestand starting on Thursday against the Chicago Bulls before a marquee showdown against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.