The Los Angeles Lakers were beaten 123-87 by the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena, their lowest-scoring game of the season and their third straight loss. Kobe Bufkin, 22, spoke afterward about what his time in the G League meant to him as the Lakers stumble toward the playoffs.
“It means a lot,” Bufkin said. “I was down there [in the G League]. I loved it... but um it's next man up. We just got to be ready.”
The guard’s comments carried extra weight because he has spent much of the season proving he belongs in the mix. Bufkin was named to the 2025-26 All-NBA G League Second Team after averaging 24.8 points and 4.3 assists across 17 regular-season games for South Bay. He shot 41.9 percent from three, scored in double figures 23 times and had three games with 40 or more points, including a season-high 42 points in December against Rip City.
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Bufkin signed a standard two-year contract with the Lakers in February and slid into the starting lineup when injuries started piling up. Los Angeles was 50-29 and holding the fourth seed in the Western Conference by Tuesday night, but it was without Luka Doncic, who is out for the rest of the regular season with a left hamstring strain; Austin Reaves, sidelined by an oblique issue; Marcus Smart, out with a lingering ankle problem; and LeBron James, who did not play as the team managed his left foot.
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Rui Hachimura led the Lakers with 15 points against Oklahoma City, and rookie Adou Thiero added a career-high 10 points despite needing eight stitches after taking an elbow from Chet Holmgren before returning in the second half. The playoff picture is already closing in, with the NBA postseason set to tip off April 18 and the Lakers likely to open against the Houston Rockets, who have won seven straight games. For a team that is short-handed and running out of tune-up time, Bufkin’s message was simple: the next call may matter more than the last game.
