There was still a game to play.
About 90 minutes after Magic Johnson shocked the sports world by abruptly stepping down as President of Basketball Operations, the Lakers hit the court for their final game of the season.
While it appeared that the Lakers were heading for one more tick in the win column, a last-minute burst from Portland’s Maurice Harkless transformed that into a 104-101 Trail Blazers victory.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope let all of his arrows fly, putting up 31 shots on his way to 32 points and eight assists. Meanwhile, the Lakers’ bench went nuts with every impact play that Jemerrio Jones — recently called up from the South Bay Lakers — made in his 11-point, 15-rebound, two-steal, two-block showcase.