Los Angeles Lakers

For 25 seasons, the Los Angeles Lakers and L.A. Clippers have cast in one another’s shadow, cohabitating in the same arena with a goal of supremacy in Southern California. Finally awakened from a three-quarter slumber that forced them into a 19-point hole, Lakers, in 2023-24 at least, made it clear who the top bunk belonged to. Wearing an all-too-familiar, determined look in his eye with the Lakers’ comeback train generating steam, LeBron James engineered the charge on both ends, outscoring Clippers single-handedly with a 19-point, five-triple frame in the fourth. Swiftly maneuvering into a Plan B with the Clippers countering his matchup hunt with traps and doubles, James’ cavalry — namely the likes of Rui Hachimura, D’Angelo Russell, and Anthony Davis — offered two-way reinforcements, influencing a signature, come-from-behind victory on February 28, 2024. For James, it marked yet another voyage through history, offering the largest final-quarter comeback of his two-decade-long, Pantheon-level career. For the Lakers as a whole, it closed the curtain on the 25-year “Hallway Series,” provided a 3-1 season-series victory over the Clippers, and elevated them into sole, temporary possession of the Western Conference’s No. 9 seed.