By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

CHAVANO “Buddy” Hield, who was linked to trade rumours with the Los Angeles Lakers, watched as LeBron James and Anthony Davis put on a show to dismantle his Indiana Pacers to claim the first National Basketball Association’s In-Season Tournament title.

While both James and Davis said it was all about being the first to do it, the Lakers were all motivated by the hefty $500,000 that each player pocketed as a Christmas gift for their 123-109 triumph over the Pacers on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

It was another cause for celebrations for the Lakers and their die-hard fans as they added the inaugural IST to the crown of the league’s first NBA “bubble” in 2020 during the shortened season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Los Angeles, coached by Darvin Ham, ended up with a perfect 7-0 win-loss record in the tournament, while Indiana, coached by Rick Carlisle, dropped to 6-1. Despite their loss, Hield and his Pacers, led by rising star Tyrese Haliburton, collected a credible $200,000 each for their efforts at the much-anticipated finale of the month-long tournament that the NBA hopes to make an annual addition to its schedule.

If there was any consolation for Hield, he will be remembered for hitting the first shot on a three-pointer from an assist from Haliburton with just 38 seconds gone on the clock in the first quarter.

However, Hield only managed to score eight points without hitting a three-pointer. The Grand Bahamian native finished with eight points, five rebounds and four assists as their starting shooting guard.

Haliburton, who is projected to be a superstar in the league, had 20 points with 11 assists to pace the Pacers. Benedict Mathurin also had 20 points and Aaron Nesmith chipped in with 15.

Indiana advanced to the final after they dismantled the Milwaukee Bucks 128- 119 on Wednesday in their semifinal match-up. They just didn’t have the energy to match against Los Angeles, who led from start to finish.

Davis ignited the Lakers with an impressive 41 points and 20 rebound performance, but it was James who took the spotlight when he was named the tournament most valuable player.Throughout the tournament, in which the voting took place for the MVP honours, James averaged 26.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1.6 steals and shot 56.8% from the field and 60.6% on 3-pointers.

The Lakers won despite making just 2 of 13 3-pointers, but were 47 of 88 from the floor (53.4%).

Using their size advantage, they also controlled the boards with a huge difference margin of 55-32.

The NBA’s fourth ranked Pacers from behind the three-point arc were simply cold as they connected on just 10 of 41 of their 3-pointers as a team.

The game drew a lot of celebrities, including basketball Hall of Famers Julius Erving and Shaquille O’Neal, football Hall of Famers Tim Brown and Shannon Sharpe, former tennis star Steffi Graf, former boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr., chef Bobby Flay, rapper Flavor Flav and members of the two-time champion Las Vegas Aces, including WNBA Finals MVP A’ja Wilson.

Hield and the Pacers will be in Detroit tonight to start a four-game road swing as they try to improve on their 12-8 fifth place standings in the Eastern Conference. The Lakers, who don’t play again until Tuesday when they head to Dallas to face the Mavericks, are also in fifth in the Western Conference at 14-9.

Both teams are riding a three-game winning streak before taking a break for the IST.