- The Result: The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Denver Nuggets 127-125 in an overtime thriller.
- The Play: Austin Reaves intentionally missed a free throw, grabbed his own board, and scored to force OT with 5.2 seconds left.
- The Finish: Luka Doncic buried a stepback jumper in the extra period to secure the victory.
LOS ANGELES — Austin Reaves didn’t just play the percentages; he manipulated the physics of the rim. With 5.2 seconds remaining and the Lakers trailing by three, Reaves stepped to the line for two free throws. After sinking the first, he executed a rare “line-drive” intentional miss off the front iron, sprinted past a frozen Denver defense, and scooped up the rebound for a game-tying baseline floater. The miracle sequence forced overtime, where the Lakers eventually outlasted the Nuggets 127-125.
The Anatomy of a Perfect Miss
Trailing 118-115, the Lakers were out of timeouts and out of options. Denver chose to foul Reaves to prevent a game-tying three-point attempt—a standard tactical move that usually seals a win. Reaves had other ideas. His second free throw hit the rim with enough force to bounce directly back into his hands, allowing him to score before the Nuggets could react.
- Reaves Final Stats: 24 points, 8 assists, 1 crucial offensive rebound.
- Luka Doncic: 34 points, including the game-winning stepback in OT.
- The Scoring Margin: Lakers won 127-125 after trailing by as many as 12 in the fourth.
What They Said
“That execution was perfection. Not many players on this earth can miss a shot like Austin Reaves just did. It changed the entire energy of the building.”
— Luka Doncic on the game-tying sequence
“We knew we needed a bounce-back. I just tried to hit it flat enough to where it wouldn’t loop. Luckily, it came right back to me.”
— Austin Reaves
Playoff Implications
This win pushes the Lakers further into the thick of the Western Conference playoff race, improving their standing as the season hits its final stretch. For Denver, the loss exposes a rare lapse in late-game rebounding discipline. The Nuggets had the game won at the free-throw line but failed to account for Reaves’ aggressiveness on the glass. With only a handful of games left, this result could be the difference between a guaranteed seed and the Play-In tournament.
