Luka Doncic played much better against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 4 on Sunday than he did in Game 3. The five-time All-Star played through an illness in Game 3, but it looked like he was feeling a lot better on Sunday.
Doncic went off for 38 points on 13-of-28 shooting, to go along with one rebound, two assists, a steal, a block and five triples in 46 minutes of action.
It still wasn’t enough, though, as the Lakers suffered a brutal 116-113 loss to the Timberwolves on Sunday. Doncic and Co. are now down 3-1 in this series and will need to pull off a near-miraculous feat if they want to book their place in the Western Conference semifinals.
Doncic acknowledged the disappointment from Sunday’s loss, but the 26-year-old also issued a defiant statement amid the Lakers’ major dilemma.
“Definitely disappointing, but we haven’t lost nothing yet,” Doncic said after the game, via Lakers Nation. “It’s first to four wins, and we gotta just believe.”
As Doncic insinuated, the Lakers may be down, but they’re not out just yet.
They return to action on Wednesday at home in Game 5, which has now become a do-or-die game for L.A. Simply put, a win keeps them alive, while a loss will see their season come to a bitter end.
What the Lakers have going for them is that LeBron James has been in this position in the past, and he has come out on top.
In 2016, James famously led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a historic come-from-behind series win against Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors to win the NBA title. That is the only time a team has ever won the NBA finals after going down 3-1.
On top of that, only 13 teams have overcome a 3-1 series deficit in NBA playoffs history, and the Lakers are now hoping to become the 14th team to do it.
