The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 119-115 after two overtimes (OTs) at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Thursday, securing the second win over the purple and gold this season.

Luka Doncic played over 52 minutes for the Mavericks on the court and dropped a triple-double of 35 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists after shooting 14-for-28 in field goals (FGs). Though it was a very physical competition on Thursday night, Doncic only earned seven free throws, but two of the four triples he made tied the score twice in the first and second OTs.

Though Doncic and LeBron James are very different players on the fronts of athleticism, defense and style of playing, Doncic's endurance of not resting at all from the second half, undertaking as much as possible on the offensive end and the ability to make clutch shots all reminded many of how James played during his years in the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Speaking of James, who was 35 points away from reaching 38,000 of career scoring before Thursday's game, he struggled with his shooting as he missed 19 shots from the field, including all seven attempts from downtown. He was one assist away from getting a triple-double that included 24 points and 16 rebounds. Having turned 38 years old two weeks ago but still having averaged over 33 points in the previous month, James slowed a bit down.

The Mavericks did a good job of containing James as well. They double-teamed him a lot when he had the ball within the 3-point line and always had at least another two defenders waiting to contest his shooting or charging of the rim when he broke the first layer of defense. Though James still made nine shots under the hoop, he was blocked six times too.

The Lakers trailed by double digits during most of the time in the first two and a half quarters in Thursday's game. The biggest reasons that they could wipe that deficit, dragged the competition into two OTs and even saw the hope of winning was their group led by Russell Westbrook.

The Lakers' backup players outscored their Mavericks counterpart 62-18. Westbrook alone had 28 points in addition to seven rebounds, five assists and two steals. His shooting performance of 3-for-6 behind the arc was surprising, but Westbrook's contributions to guarding Doncic was more impressive.

The Lakers toggled between switching and blitzing in containing Doncic in the first half of Thursday's game and, as a result, watched him go 7-for-11 from the field to get 18 points, six rebounds and five assists. Simply speaking, they neither stopped his individual attack nor cut his connections with teammates.

From the third quarter, the purple and gold increased blitzing against Doncic dramatically and Westbrook was often the one who attacked from Doncic's blind side. As a result, Doncic shot 6-for-17 in the second half and two OTs to get only 17 points. Moreover, Westbrook did a good job of guarding Doncic by himself in the low block and denying him the ball in a series of off-ball plays.

Other games on Thursday (away teams come first):

Oklahoma City Thunder 133-114 Philadelphia 76ers

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shot 10-for-16 in FGs to drop 37 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Thunder to beat the 76ers at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Thursday. He only shot (and made) one 3-pointer, but made all 16 free throws he earned from the 76ers that had the league's fourth-best defensive rating (104.1).

On the 76ers' side, Joel Embiid and James Harden combined to score 54 points, 16 rebounds and 17 assists, but their performances were not as good as the stats showed. Embiid, who played the final layer of defense for the team, played less than 28 minutes due to foul trouble; Harden committed seven turnovers and missed all three of his FGs (all at the 3-point line) in the fourth quarter.

Boston Celtics 109-98 Brooklyn Nets

Both sides lacked a star player in Thursday's game at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City. The Celtics rested Jaylen Brown for right adductor tightness; the Nets continued to miss Kevin Durant who suffered a medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprain. As a result, Jayson Tatum and Kyrie Irving became the major target of the opponents' defense and shot at lower than 40 percent of FG rate.

Role players of the two teams, including Marcus Smart, Derrick White and Malcolm Brogdon on the Celtics' side, as well as Joe Harris, T. J. Warren and Seth Curry on the Nets' side, made bigger contributions than usual for their teams. The game remained close in most of the time, but the Celtics threw the Nets into a scoring drought of over four minutes early in the fourth quarter, extending their lead from two (84-82) to 12 points (96-84). Having gone 6-for-19 from the field in this quarter, the Nets didn't attack efficiently enough to come back.

Charlotte Hornets 114-124 Toronto Raptors

The Raptors secured their third straight win after defeating the Hornets at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada, on Thursday. All five starters plus Precious Achiuwa off the bench reached double-digit points. Pascal Siakam made 11 of his 13 FG attempts to drop game-high 32 points for the Raptors.

LaMelo Ball played over 40 minutes for the Hornets in Thursday's game and dropped 32 points and seven assists before he was fouled out in the fourth quarter. He has made only 19 appearances for the team this season because of injuries. The Hornets have already replaced the Detroit Pistons to bottom the Eastern Conference with a 11-32 record.

Milwaukee Bucks 102-108 Miami Heat

Cleveland Cavaliers 119-113 Portland Trail Blazers