Lakers gutted as Bulls' Josh Giddey sinks half-court buzzer-beater
03/27/2025 10:41 PM
For the second straight night, the Los Angeles Lakers were involved in a buzzer-beater. This time, they were on the wrong end of it, though.
The Lakers trailed the Chicago Bulls 116-115 with under 10 seconds left. But coach JJ Redick drew up a beautiful play that got Austin Reaves a clean look driving to the basket. He nailed the layup with 3.1 seconds to go. The Bulls were out of timeouts.
Enter Josh Giddey, and get ready to let your mouth drop.
JOSH GIDDEY HALF-COURT GAME WINNER
WHAT AN ENDING.
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) March 28, 2025
Giddey inbounded the ball and immediately got it back before launching a 46-foot prayer from beyond half court. He swished it, sending the Bulls crowd into a frenzy as Giddey’s teammates mobbed him, carrying him halfway off of the court.
Many might think this was simply bad luck for Los Angeles. But in truth, they put themselves into this position.
The Lakers had complete control of the game vs. the hapless Bulls. They led 105-92 with just over five minutes left in the fourth quarter. Following a quick 8-0 run, LeBron James and Austin Reaves help quell the comeback attempt.
Reaves, in particular, was fantastic down the stretch. He scored six of his game-high 30 points in the final 30 seconds.
With just 12 seconds remaining, the Lakers led 115-110. Teams in that position are nearly undefeated. But not on this night.
Patrick Williams drained a trey out of the timeout, cutting the deficit to two. Then, LeBron’s turned it over and Coby White sank a triple. In a split second, the Lakers went from up five to down one.
That set up the penultimate moment for Reaves.
All is not lost though for the Lakers. James finally put forth a solid effort, as he had struggled since returning from injury. He finished with 17 points, 12 assists and five rebounds on 8-for-20 shooting.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic struggled mightily from the field. He nearly triple-doubled with a 25-12-8 line, but was only 8-for-22 from the field.
On Wednesday night, LeBron tipped in a Doncic miss at the buzzer, sending Los Angeles into euphoria. Tonight, the shoe was on the other foot.
The Lakers will look to right the ship Saturday night at Memphis.
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