'Basketball gods blessed us': Lonnie Walker sounds off after 28-point outburst in Lakers win

The Los Angeles Lakers might be turning the corner finally after a horrible start to the 2022-23 NBA season. They followed up their 121-110 win Sunday at home over the Denver Nuggets with another victory at Crypto.com Arena Wednesday night, defeating the visiting New Orleans Pelicans, 120-117, via overtime. Lonnie Walker IV, who played a huge role in both wins, said that the basketball gods had something to do with how the Lakers managed to force overtime.

"My jump shot is too beautiful to not be making any threes." – @lonniewalker_4 speaks with @LakersReporter after scoring season-high 28 points against the Pelicans. pic.twitter.com/XvkHVdO9l6

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) November 3, 2022

The Lakers looked like they were circling down the drain when Walker’s 3-point shot near the end of regulation did not go in, with his team trailing by three. Los Angeles would foul Dyson Daniels after that Walker miss, but fortunately for the Lakers, Daniels would miss both freebies, opening a glimmer of hope for LA to tie it all up with a three. That’s what the Lakers did, with Matt Ryan turning into an instant folk hero in Hollywood by draining a tough triple from the right-side corner off an inbound pass from Austin Reaves.

Walker finished with a game-high 28 points, a performance that was throwback to his glory days with the Miami Hurricanes. He shot the ball well, going 9-for-17 from the field and 5-for-9 from behind the arc for the Lakers, who also got 20 points each from Anthony Davis and LeBron James.

Walker is in a groove right now, as he’s averaged 23.0 points on 48.8 percent shooting from the field and 57.1 percent from deep over the last two Lakers games. He will look to sustain that form when LA hosts the Utah Jazz on Friday.