LA Lakers pull off surprising 112-95 win over Warriors

The star point guard dazzled on the court all day with an endless flurry of 3-pointers and nifty passes. His team relentlessly forced tuovers and pushed the pace toward easy baskets. And its opponent appeared dazed and confused as it slogged up and down the court.

It sounded like just what anyone would expect between the Weste Conference’s worst (Lakers) and the Weste Conference’s best (Golden State Warriors). But something happened that became just as entertaining as one of Stephen Curry’s scoring outbursts.

The Lakers secured a surprising 112-95 victory over the Warriors on Sunday at Staples Center by perfecting something the NBA defending champions usually did.

With all the understandable conce on last year’s NBA regular-season MVP, Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell had enough ice in his veins to top Curry in points (21-18), shooting clip (6 of 14, 6 of 20), 3-pointers (3 of 7, 1 of 10) and assists (5-4).

Even if he nursed a strained tendon in his left knee that sidelined him for a game, Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson beat out Warriors guard Klay Thompson in points (25-15), shooting clip (10 of 21, 7 of 20) and 3-pointers (4 of 6, 0 of 8).

And despite posting 12 points on 4-of-14 shooting in 25 minutes while nursing a sore right shoulder, Kobe Bryant also played in his last game against Golden State by providing endless tips from the bench.

So how on Earth did the Lakers (13-51) play like a championship contender while the Warriors (55-5) played like a lottery team?

Perhaps the 12:30 p.m. start against an inferior opponent lulled the NBA defending champions into complacency. Perhaps the L.A. nightlife seemed too enjoyable for the Warriors on Saturday. But amid those uncertainties, the Lakers definitely offered promising hope for their future during a frustrating present.

The moments happened everywhere.

The Lakers forced 17 tuovers, while posting 46 points in the paint. Seven players cracked double digits in scoring, including Clarkson, Russell, Bryant, Brandon Bass (13 points), Nick Young (13 points), Julius Randle (12 points, 14 rebounds) and Marcelo Huertas (10 points, career-high nine assists). Larry Nance Jr. threw down a pair of dunks to shed conces about his sore right knee, including a lob from Huertas. Clarkson also attacked the basket and converted on a two-handed slam.

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