Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic and forward LeBron James. David Richard-Imagn Images

Magic's fortunate bounce exposes cracks within Lakers

By Sean Keane | Last updated Feb 25, 2026 10:08 PM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers were seconds away from holding off an Orlando Magic comeback Tuesday night. Then a loose ball bounced into Wendell Carter's hands and the Lakers' internal drama ramped up again.

Carter's layup gave the Magic a one-point lead and LeBron James missed a game-winner to give Orlando the 110-109 win. After the game, comments from James exposed a tangible rift within the sixth-place Lakers.

Lakers came heartbreakingly close to a successful home stand

Through a quirk of scheduling, the Lakers followed up an eight-game road trip with an eight-game home stand at the Crypto.com Center. After going 5-3 away from home, the last-second loss left the Lakers with a 4-4 record at home and left them 1.5 games back of the third-place Houston Rockets.

And it left James unhappy. The Magic had rallied from a double-digit deficit to take a lead before Luka Doncic found James under the basket for a go-ahead dunk. The Lakers played tough defense on the other end, forcing a miss and then knocking the ball away from Anthony Black. But the ball bounced to Carter, who hit the decisive basket.

Magic win on a thrilling sequence!

The biggest of @wendellcarter34's 12 boards and 20 points leads Orlando to its 6th win in 8 games https://t.co/FhfOvkDuFs pic.twitter.com/DSgFtR2CUU
— NBA (@NBA) February 25, 2026

The Lakers had a chance to win, but Doncic passed to James instead of shooting in the final seconds, and James missed his potential game-winner. James criticized the decision after the game, another moment of friction between the Lakers' old and new superstars.

LeBron James may be unhappy with Doncic and Lakers

James' postgame comments came on the heels of a podcast where Max Kellerman ripped Doncic for his repeated clashes with referees, suggesting that Doncic's statue would be a pose of him complaining about a foul call.

Max Kellerman RIPS Luka Doncic for always crying to the refs

“Luka statue is going to be him complaining to the refs. Every trip down the floor you are complaining to the refs. Every trip down the floor? Even when he hits the shot. No you are not going to get the and 1, it… pic.twitter.com/zEEMtkiLTs
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) February 23, 2026

This was significant because Kellerman said it in front of co-host Rich Paul, James' good friend and agent, who offered no pushback. James isn't responsible for what his agent's podcast partner says, but it seems clear that Paul and James aren't enthralled with Doncic.

If Carter hadn't gotten the ball, the story might be how the Lakers were tied for fifth place, poised to grab home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Instead, the discourse is about how James and Doncic aren't playing well together at the end of games — and renewed discussion of James' future after this season.

It's not what the Lakers want as they make their playoff push. In the tightly packed Western Conference race, every bounce of the ball matters.

Sean Keane

Sean Keane is a sportswriter and a comedian based in Oakland, California, with experience covering the NBA, MLB, NFL and Ice Cube’s three-on-three basketball league, The Big 3. He’s written for Comedy Central’s “Another Period,” ESPN the Magazine, and Audible. com

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