Doncic and James lead Lakers' rally to beat shorthanded Grizzlies 128-121

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luka Doncic scored 34 points — half on free throws — and LeBron James added 31 as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied to beat the short-handed Memphis Grizzlies 128-121 on Friday night to open a two-game set.

The teams will meet again Sunday in Los Angeles.

Doncic had eight assists and six rebounds. James had nine rebounds and six assists. The superstars dominated the fourth quarter, highlighted by a 12-2 run that put it out of reach. Doncic scored four points and assisted on two 3-pointers while James closed out the spurt with a basket.

The Grizzlies were missing six players, including Zach Edey. They had six players in double figures.

Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 25 points to lead the Grizzlies, who have dropped four of six and fell two games under .500 on the road. Former Laker Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 20 points. Ja Morant had 16 points and 11 assists coming off his 40-point game in an overtime loss to Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Jake Laravia had 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting and nine rebounds for the Lakers.

The Lakers blew a 15-point lead in the second quarter after the Grizzlies ran off 18 straight points to take a three-point lead, their first of the game. Caldwell-Pope hit two of the Grizzlies' four 3-pointers in the spurt with Jock Landale adding seven points.

Caldwell-Pope's back-to-back 3-pointers forced a 96-all tie going into the fourth.

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Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr., right, reacts after being called for a foul on Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, left shots as Memphis Grizzlies forward Santi Aldama defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Memphis Grizzlies center Jock Landale, right, shoots as Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Memphis Grizzlies center Christian Koloko, left, is hit in the face by Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James as they wait for a rebound during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

ISTANBUL (AP) — A Turkish court on Thursday issued a ruling that effectively removed the head of the country’s main opposition party by annulling a 2023 congress that elected him.

The move deals a serious blow to the beleaguered Republican People’s Party, or CHP, as it struggles under waves of legal cases targeting its members and elected officials.

An appeals court in Turkey’s capital Ankara declared the CHP congress that picked Ozgur Ozel as chairman to be null, ordering that he should be replaced by his predecessor, Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

Last year, a lower court ruled against claims of irregularities and misconduct surrounding Ozel’s election but Thursday’s decision overturned the original verdict.

The ruling led to frantic meetings at the CHP’s Ankara headquarters, further threatening the opposition’s chances of unseating President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after more than two decades in office. Large crowds gathered outside the office block and police erected barriers.

The next presidential election is due in 2028 but Erdogan can call for an early vote. His main challenger, the CHP mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu, has been imprisoned since March last year and is currently on trial on corruption charges.

The appeals court's decision suspends Ozel and members of the party’s executive board from their duties. They will be “provisionally” replaced by Kilicdaroglu and those who held office before the November 2023 congress.

In comments to broadcaster TV100, Kilicdaroglu called for party members to remain calm. “Our party is a very large party and it will solve its own problems internally,” he said. The 77-year-old was removed following a 13-year tenure as leader, during which the CHP failed to win any national elections.

Ozel, meanwhile, attempted to rally supporters.

“I am not promising you a path to power through a rose garden,” he posted on X following the ruling. “I am promising you the ability to endure suffering but never surrender. I am promising you honor, dignity, courage and struggle!”

The CHP is expected to challenge Thursday’s ruling in the Supreme Court in the coming days.

Justice Minister Akin Gurlek, who oversaw several cases against the CHP in his former role as Istanbul’s chief prosecutor, described the court’s ruling as one that “reinforces our citizens’ trust in democracy.”

Many observers have said that the legal cases against the CHP — mostly centered on corruption allegations — are politically motivated and aimed at neutralizing the party ahead of the next election. The government, however, insists that Turkey’s courts are impartial and act independently of political pressure.

Erdogan has ruled Turkey, first as prime minister and then as president, since 2003. His electoral record suffered a serious blow in 2019 when the CHP seized control of several major cities in local elections. In Istanbul, Imamoglu emerged as a popular and charismatic figure that many felt could successfully topple Erdogan.

FILE - Republican People's Party or (CHP) leader Ozgur Ozel gestures to party members during his speech during a CHP convention, in Ankara, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Ali Unal, File)

FILE - Turkish CHP party leader and Nation Alliance's presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu, center, joins legislators elected to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey as they attend their first parliamentary session, in Ankara, Turkey, June 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Ali Unal, File)