Without the ailing LeBron James, the NBA playoffs for the Los Angeles Lakers and Dennis Schröder are getting further and further away. Other German professionals can look forward to victories.
Without NBA record holder LeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers have suffered the next painful defeat in the North American league with German national basketball player Dennis Schröder.
The Lakers lost 115-127 at the Portland Trail Blazers and suffered another setback in the race for a playoff spot against a direct competitor.
James missed the third game in a row with an ankle problem since becoming the top points-scorer in league history last week. In the fourth defeat in the past five games, Schröder only hit one of his seven throws from the field and only scored two points. The Lakers are only 13th out of the 15 teams in the Western Conference.
Victory for Wagner brothers and Orlando
Things went better for Franz and Moritz Wagner. With the Orlando Magic, the brothers won 100-91 at the Chicago Bulls. Franz Wagner contributed 18 points, Moritz Wagner scored seven points. Paolo Banchero was the best thrower with 22 points. Despite the 24th success, Orlando only occupies 13th place among the 15 teams in the Eastern Conference.
The New York Knicks are on a playoff spot with German center Isaiah Hartenstein. The Knicks prevailed in the city derby against the Brooklyn Nets 124:106, Hartenstein scored eight points in his 32nd win of the season.
The Nets had won the last nine derbies, but are now playing without Kyrie Irving, who has moved to Dallas. With the Mavericks, Irving lost 121-124 at home to the Minnesota Timberwolves, despite scoring 26 of his 36 points in the last quarter on his home debut. Irving had never scored so many points in a final section before. Team-mate Luka Doncic’s 33 points were also not enough in the Mavericks’ race to catch up after they were 26 points behind.
