Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic was ejected after receiving his second technical foul for an exchange with a fan, sparking a huge run by the Oklahoma City Thunder, who went on to win 136–120.
The Los Angeles Lakers were unable to secure back-to-back wins against the Oklahoma City Thunder, falling 120–136 after a crushing fourth-quarter run by the Western Conference leaders.
The momentum shift may have been triggered by the ejection of Lakers star Luka Doncic, who was leading the team with 23 points and 5 assists.
The turning point came midway through the fourth quarter when Doncic, after hitting a tough shot over Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein, appeared to direct an explicit remark toward a fan. The referee responded by issuing Doncic a second technical foul, leading to his ejection.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
40
|
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | |
| Points | 42 |
| Accuracy | 14-26 |
| Rebounds | 6 |
| Assists | 6 |
At the time, the Lakers were clinging to a narrow 108–107 lead with 7:42 remaining. After Doncic’s exit, Oklahoma City went on a dominant run to close out the game.
Postgame, Doncic expressed confusion over the ejection and clarified that his comments weren’t directed at the official.
"I've never got a fan ejected. Never. But if he's going to talk, I'm gonna talk back like always. That had nothing to do with the ref, so I really didn't understand," Doncic reacted to his ejection.
The Lakers star took responsibility for the team’s collapse after his departure.
"It was tough, we were right there," Luka said. "I think we fought the whole game, we were down 8 at halftime, we came back in the third quarter and we were fighting, so it was tough to see this situation to happen. That's on me, I can't let my team down like that."
Following the loss, the Lakers remain third in the Western Conference with a 48–31 record. They now turn their focus to a highly anticipated matchup on Wednesday in Dallas—Doncic’s former team, the Mavericks.
Thank you for reading us! Help us even more.
