Luka Doncic scored 53 points on Friday night, and the shot people will talk about longest came before halftime. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Portland Trail Blazers 124-118 at Crypto.com Arena, and Doncic’s 61-foot banked heave at the buzzer turned a game the Lakers were losing into one they controlled by the fourth quarter.

It was a season high for Doncic, and his second 50-point night of the season after a 52-point game against Utah on October 25. He finished with five assists and five rebounds on 17-of-33 shooting, including five 3-pointers, and he made 14 of 18 free throws. The win, an Emirates NBA Cup group game, moved the Lakers to 8-2 and avenged a 136-129 home loss to Portland on October 27.

The Luka Doncic 53 points night turned on a 61-foot heave

For most of the first half, nothing worked for Los Angeles from deep. The Lakers missed their first 15 3-point attempts and made just 3 of 23 from distance, and Doncic missed his first five 3-point tries. Portland led by 16 in the second quarter, and the home crowd had gone quiet on a garish yellow tournament court.

Then Doncic took a few dribbles, stopped in the far free-throw circle, and let one fly. The ball banked off the glass and dropped through as the buzzer sounded, cutting Portland’s lead to 60-53 at the break. It was a 61-footer, according to the league’s play-by-play, and LakeShowLife called it the longest make of his career.

Halftime leads don’t win games. This one changed the mood all the same. Portland had controlled the first 24 minutes. After the heave, the Lakers came out of the locker room like a different team, and the crowd that had sat in silence was back on its feet.

A 20-point third quarter flipped the game

Doncic scored 20 points in the third quarter alone. He outscored the whole Portland team 20-15 in the period, and Los Angeles ripped off 17 straight points as part of a 32-11 run. A 16-point deficit early in the second quarter had become a 16-point Lakers lead early in the fourth. That’s how fast a game can turn when one player gets going and the other side has no answer.

Portland didn’t fold. The Blazers kept getting within four points down the stretch, but they never got closer. Doncic hit a jumper in the lane with 28 seconds left, and he and Austin Reaves combined for 10 points in the final seconds to close it out. The Lakers had to earn the last minute. They did.

An NBA Cup game with a little revenge in it

Portland had already beaten the Lakers once this season, 136-129 at the same building on October 27. Friday was a chance to settle that, and it doubled as an Emirates NBA Cup group game, which gave the night a little extra edge. Cup games count in the standings, and they also decide who moves on in the in-season tournament. The Lakers took care of both.

The Blazers arrived in Los Angeles at the end of a four-game road trip, and they lost for only the second time this season. They played well enough to win most nights. They just ran into a player having one of those nights where the basket looks twice as wide.

Reaves and Kessler backed up the star turn

Reaves scored 25 points, and Walker Kessler added 16 points and 12 rebounds. That gave the Lakers a second scoring option and a presence on the glass while Doncic carried the offense. Portland got 22 points from Deni Avdija, who added 11 assists and nine rebounds, and 22 from Damian Lillard.

The supporting cast mattered because Doncic can’t do this alone every night. He nearly has, lately. But the Lakers are a better team when the shots around him fall, and on Friday the help arrived right when the game was there to be won.

Luka Doncic 53 points, and a place beside Lakers greats

Friday was Doncic’s fourth straight game with at least 40 points, and his seventh straight with at least 35. The streak includes six 40-point games and a 37-point night. He has now scored at least 35 points, five assists, five rebounds and five 3-pointers in seven straight games.

The history books noticed. Doncic joined Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant and George Mikan as the only Lakers to score 40 or more in four straight regular-season games. He also passed Mikan for the fifth-most 40-point games in Lakers history — after just 101 regular-season games in a Lakers uniform. Friday was the 11th 50-point game of his career and his fourth with Los Angeles.

He’s the league’s leading scorer right now, according to the New York Post, and nights like this are why. The Lakers traded for a superstar. They’re getting one at the absolute peak of his powers.

What’s next

Portland hosts San Antonio on Saturday. The Lakers head to Detroit on Sunday, where Doncic will try to keep the run going. Four straight 40-point games is rare air. Five would put him in a conversation by himself.

For more from the start of the NBA season, see our NBA opening-day photo story.

Frequently asked questions

How many points did Luka Doncic score against the Trail Blazers?
53 — a season high, and his second 50-point game of the season. He added five assists and five rebounds, shot 17 of 33 from the field, and made five 3-pointers.

How far was Doncic’s buzzer-beater?
61 feet. He banked it in from the opposite free-throw circle right at the halftime buzzer, cutting Portland’s lead to 60-53. LakeShowLife called it the longest make of his career.

What was the final score of Lakers vs Trail Blazers?
Lakers 124, Trail Blazers 118, on Friday night, November 6, at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. It was an Emirates NBA Cup group game.

How many straight 40-point games does Doncic have now?
Four. That puts him alongside Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant and George Mikan as the only Lakers ever to do it in four straight regular-season games. He’s also scored at least 35 in seven straight.