Their last meeting had everything.
Electric atmosphere. Furious comeback.
Dillon Brooks and LeBron James going at it all night again, with their final interaction leading to an ejection.
Clutch free throws with three seconds left.
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One can only hope for an even better encore when the Phoenix Suns (15-13) and Los Angeles Lakers (19-8) meet again Dec. 23 at Mortgage Matchup Center.
“Try to defend without fouling,” Suns guard Collin Gillespie said. “Show crowds. Play with pace. They’re an older team. We’ve got to get up and down.”
The Suns are coming off a 119-116 loss Dec. 20 at Golden State in a second game in three days against the Warriors, who lost 99-98 Dec. 18 in Phoenix.
“Great fight,” Suns coach Jordan Ott said after the Dec. 20 loss. “Tough environment. This is where you learn, in the fire. These nights. We’ll take a look, and I’m sure there are some possessions we’re going to want back, but overall, again, this is what this group does. Fight, be competitive every night.”
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The Suns were outscored 29-20 in the third quarter and trailed 93-87 heading into the fourth after leading by as many as 14 points in the first half.
“This is a team that’ll make you pay for any miscommunication or missed coverage,” Suns star guard Devin Booker said about the Warriors. “Third quarter, it got away from us.”
The Suns fell to the Lakers, 116-114, at home Dec. 14 after rallying from 20 points down in the fourth quarter to take a one-point lead.
Brooks hit a 3 over James with 12.2 seconds left to give the Suns the lead, but he was called for a second technical foul and ejected for unsportsmanlike physical contact with James during a dead-ball situation as the Lakers had called a timeout.
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James missed the ensuing technical free throw, but he was later fouled on a 3 by Devin Booker with 3 seconds left. With the crowd going crazy, James missed the first free throw, but he made the next two to put the Lakers up for good.
Luka Doncic scored 29 points to lead the Lakers, while Booker paced the Suns with 27 points. The Lakers clearly won the free-throw game, going 33-of-43 from the line.
Devin Booker #1 of the Phoenix Suns reacts to a call during the second half of a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Mortgage Matchup Center on Dec. 14, 2025, in Phoenix.
Phoenix just 21-of-25. The Lakers also grabbed 24 offensive rebounds that led to 25 second-chance points.
The matchup was a result of both teams losing in the NBA Cup quarterfinals.
The Suns and Lakers have split their first two games, with Phoenix winning 125-108 in Los Angeles on Dec. 1.
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They’ll play each other two more times this 2025-26 regular season on Feb. 26 in Phoenix and April 10 in Los Angeles.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers ready to battle again