Magic Announce Franchise Milestone Amid LeBron James’ Historic Game

What those fans got to witness was worth every penny, and it all started with James.

Moments after Deandre Ayton won the tip, James took a pass in transition and threw down a thunderous breakaway dunk that looked like an emphatic announcement that game No. 1,612 had officially begun. The Lakers jumped out to a 6-0 lead. History, it seemed, would come with a bow on top.

But the drama had only started.

Orlando stormed back with a 22-2 run. Luka Doncic, the Lakers' leading scorer with 33 points on the night, got tangled up with Goga Bitadze late in the third quarter. Things escalated with both players eventually receiving technical fouls. 

For Doncic, it was his 16th of the season, the threshold that calls for an automatic one-game suspension unless the league rescinds it. The Lakers' MVP candidate, who has been on a scorching scoring run, had just put his availability for Monday's game in Detroit at risk.

The fourth quarter became a seesaw. Orlando led by five inside the final minute. Paolo Banchero blocked James at the rim with 4.7 seconds remaining. After a replay review confirmed Lakers possession, Marcus Smart inbounded to a wide-open Luke Kennard. The trade-deadline acquisition from Atlanta, who had been slumping from three, buried the game-winner with 0.6 seconds left.

The Lakers' bench erupted. And a good chunk of the road crowd also joined in. The Lakers fans in Central Florida indeed had a reason: the LA side hadn't won at the Kia Center since December 27, 2022. They'd lost their previous two visits, including last March's contest that set the franchise attendance record. Franz Wagner had dropped 32 and Banchero added 30 in a 118-106 beat-down in that game.

LeBron James Finally Gets a ‘W’ in His Historic Game

James, meanwhile, also broke free of a painful narrative. As things stand, his milestone games haven't always ended in celebration for the team. Here is how:

• March 2026: James broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's field-goal record. Los Angeles fell 120-113 to the Denver Nuggets.
• March 2024: James touched the 40,000-point mark. The Lakers lost 124-114 to the Nuggets.
• February 2023: James passed Abdul-Jabbar for the all-time scoring record. The Lakers lost 133-130 to the Oklahoma City Thunder. 

Kennard's three-pointer flipped the script. And James’ unfiltered celebrations after that felt like it was a moment he had waited for a long time.