NBA Cup: Doncic shines as Lakers beat Trail Blazers; Wembanyama inspires Spurs to win vs Kings

Luka Doncic scored 53 points for Los Angeles Lakers, while Victor Wembanyama got 30 points in San Antonio Spurs’ win over Sacramento Kings. | Photo Credit: AP

Luka Doncic poured in 53 points to propel the Los Angeles Lakers to a 124-118 NBA Cup victory over Portland on Friday.

Doncic’s latest big game helped the Lakers shake off a sluggish start that saw them trailing by as many as 16 points in the second quarter.

Doncic closed the first half with an astonishing shot from well beyond the halfcourt line, pulling the Lakers within seven points and setting the tone for their second-half surge.

The Trail Blazers had pulled within four points in the final minute when he hit a floater, and the Lakers held on for their fourth straight win.

He has scored at least 40 in six of his last seven games and joined Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant and George Mikan as the only Lakers to score 40 or more in four straight regular-season contests.

“I’m having a lot of fun,” said Doncic, who added five rebounds and five assists. “Obviously playing basketball, it’s a lot of fun for me. It’s more (fun) when you play like this and when you win games.”

The 11th 50-point game of Doncic’s career was his fourth with the Lakers -- passing LeBron James and tying Mikan for fourth most for the franchise.

ALSO READ | LeBron James has rough return to Cleveland with only his 10th regular-season single-digit game

Friday’s games were part of NBA Cup group-stage action, which will continue throughout November.

Quarterfinals of the in-season tournament will be played December 4-5 and semifinals December 8-9 before the final on December 11.

The Boston Celtics drained a whopping 24 three-pointers on 44 attempts in a 119-80 blowout of the Hornets in Charlotte.

Jayson Tatum drilled five three-pointers on the way to a game-high 34 points for Boston -- who led by as many as 46 in the wire-to-wire win.

Wemby fuels Spurs

San Antonio star Victor Wembanyama, coming off a stunning 52-point, 24-rebound performance in a win over Dallas, scored 30 points and pulled down 14 rebounds to lead the Spurs to a 124-109 victory over the Kings in Sacramento.

Oklahoma City Thunder continued its dominance of the Grizzlies with a 128-97 win in Memphis.

Ajay Mitchell scored a career-high 35 points, and two-time defending NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 28 for the Thunder, which notched a 13th straight regular-season win over the Grizzlies despite missing injured starters Jaylen Williams, Cason Wallace and Chet Holmgren.

The absences were irrelevant as the Thunder jumped to a 71-49 halftime lead.

(With inputs from AFP)

Published on Nov 07, 2026

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