LOS ANGELES — Early in the first half Saturday night, it seemed as if the verdict finally were in.
Kendrick Nunn, Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony were all sitting on the bench injured. The New York Knicks, who have one of the worst offenses in the NBA, were torching the Los Angeles Lakers’ defense, and Russell Westbrook missed a shot off the side of the backboard.
Louder than they have all season, boos filled Crypto.com Arena.
The big swings the team took last summer had all missed, at least in the sense of making the Lakers winners. And the evidence was quickly mounting in front of a national TV audience and restless home crowd.
But then there was Malik Monk, maybe the summer’s biggest bargain and the Lakers’ greatest offseason success. And Saturday, because they got that one right, the Lakers fought off disaster — a couple of times.
The Lakers were down 21 points to the floundering Knicks, but Monk triggered a furious comeback, his 18 points in the third quarter changing the game and leading his team to a 122-115 overtime victory.
Monk’s heroics were almost outdone by the Lakers’ own collapse.
The Lakers blew a seven-point lead in the final 77 seconds thanks to awful free-throw shooting, head-scratching defensive decisions and miserable offensive execution. But thanks to a triple-double from LeBron James — 29 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists — in his return to the lineup following a five-game injury absence and a late three-pointer from Trevor Ariza, the Lakers were able to hang on.
The ending wasn’t without serious drama, the Lakers letting RJ Barrett get loose to bring the Knicks all the way back to tie, thanks in part to some ill-timed Westbrook gambles that left the Lakers’ defense vulnerable.
Coach Frank Vogel benched Westbrook for overtime, electing to go with Talen Horton-Tucker.
It was the Lakers’ biggest comeback of the season and the largest since 2015.
Monk, inserted into the starting lineup along with the returning James, scored 29 points — 25 coming in the second half when the Lakers outscored the Knicks by 15.
After missing the last five games because of swelling in his left knee, James was back on the floor after being upgraded from doubtful to questionable earlier in the day. He went through a pregame workout, the final hurdle to being cleared.
He didn’t show many signs of rust, extending his streak of games with at least 25 points to 19. And Anthony Davis, who had played some of his most aggressive basketball with James sidelined, didn’t slow down as he finished with 28 points and 17 rebounds.
But it was Monk who made the difference, his confidence and play just enough to make up for a very rough night for Westbrook, who was booed again after missing an uncontested three-point try in the fourth quarter.
The shot came after Westbrook hesitated despite being wide open. At the next stoppage of play, Monk and Anthony, who missed the game because of an injured hamstring, encouraged Westbrook to shoot confidently and decisively.
But that confidence was visibly shaken as he went just one for 10 from the field, and, at his best Saturday, he mostly stayed out of the way on the offensive end. He missed a pair of free-throw tries to murmurs from the crowd, helping keep the Knicks alive.
He was just three for seven at the free-throw line.
Westbrook did make a key defensive stop during the Lakers’ comeback, turning a Knicks fast break into a turnover and three-pointer from Monk on the other end.
Like he did earlier this season, Vogel kept Westbrook out of the game in the closing minutes, a decision that this time helped the team get a desperately needed win.
Barrett led the Knicks with 36 points, and Julius Randle scored 32 to go with 16 rebounds and seven assists.
The Lakers host the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.
