James and Smith have exchanged comments with one another, having started with the latter’s criticism of the Los Angeles Lakers star’s son Bronny. This has since resurfaced with James calling out Smith on the Pat McAfee Show, resulting in another response from the ESPN First Take host.
However, Bayless, who is frequent with his criticism of James, decided to be positive towards him and Doncic. The star duo played heavy minutes against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, but decided to take part in Thursday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls. This garnered praise from the analyst.
Despite having LeBron James and Luka Doncic available, the Lakers lost in a 119-117 thriller to the Bulls.
The Lakers led by 16 going into the fourth quarter. However, the Bulls fought back as they scored 44 points in the period. Austin Reaves gave Los Angeles a 117-116 lead with three seconds left before Josh Giddey knocked down a halfcourt shot to get Chicago the win.
Reaves led the Lakers in scoring with 28 points and three assists. He shot 9-of-16 from the field, including 3-of-9 from beyond the arc. Doncic came next with 25 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Meanwhile, Jaxson Hayes put up 19 points and eight rebounds as James finished with 17 points and 12 assists.
Los Angeles fell to 44-29 on the season but remain fourth in the Western Conference standings. They are 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets and three games behind the Houston Rockets.
Following Thursday’s loss to the Bulls, the Lakers will look to bounce back in their next matchup. They face the Memphis Grizzlies on March 29 at 8 p.m. ET.
