Luka Dončić's early exit derails Lakers in loss to Clippers

Inglewood, Calif --- In the second matchup of the season in the battle of Los Angeles, the Clippers got the upper hand, dropping the Lakers 103-88 on Saturday night as Luka Dončić left the game and didn't return.

The loss dropped the Lakers to 19-8 and snapped the Clippers' five-game losing streak and eight straight losses at home.

The energy and effort were all the Clippers', with a 9-0 jump to start the game and a mixture of cold shooting displays as the Lakers missed their first five shots and Dončić missed his first six. The Lakers would make just two 3s (10% shooting) in the first half, which resulted in the Clippers leading by 15 to end the first half.

Dončić's pace would die down in the first two quarters, limping and showing signs he wasn't 100%. He would finish with 12 points on four-of-13 shooting going into halftime.

"I saw him hobbling toward the end of the first half; he came to me at halftime and told me he couldn't go," coach JJ Redick said.

The injury was a left leg contusion, leaving the Lakers down four starters going into the second half with Austin Reaves, Deandre Ayton and Rui Hachimura already sidelined.

The offensive load in the second half, along with most of the first half, was carried by LeBron James, who created sparks diving on loose balls and setting a tone on the defensive end with the Lakers' rotation players.

"No matter what the circumstance is, it's still next man up," James said, who finished with a season-high 36 points.

The Clippers went out to their biggest lead in the second half, 22 points, erasing multiple runs by the Lakers after cutting it to single digits. They would finish the night hitting 16 3s on 37% shooting, while the Lakers shot their season-lowest 16% on six made 3s.

"We had some great looks but just didn't make shots," James said on the Lakers' shooting woes. "But we still gave ourselves a chance to be in the game by how well we defended."

Kawhi Leonard and James Harden's two-man game closed out the Lakers in the final minutes, with the Lakers trying everything to get the score within reach. Cold-blooded shots and sequences between the two forced fans to leave their seats early before the final horn.

Leonard finished with 32 points, while Harden had 21 points and 10 assists.

The Lakers will play the Suns on the road next up on Tuesday, before playing the following five games at home, starting on Christmas Day against the Houston Rockets.