LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James had 18 points, six assists and four rebounds in the first half, and the Los Angeles Lakers tuned up for the postseason with a 131-107 win over the Utah Jazz on Sunday night.
Rui Hachimura and Deandre Ayton each had 22 points and 10 assists. James and Luke Kennard were held out of the second half as a precautionary measure, and the Lakers closed the regular season on a three-game winning streak. They finished fourth in the Western Conference and will face Houston in the first round of the playoffs.
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Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart is defended by Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey (19) as he drives to the basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) goes up to shoot over Utah Jazz forward Blake Hinson (2) for a basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton (5) goes up to dunk as he is defended by Utah Jaz guard Bez Mbeng, bottom left, and forward Blake Hinson, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is defended by Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey, left, and Jazz forward Cody Williams as he drives to the basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is defended by Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey, left, and Jazz forward Cody Williams as he drives to the basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Despite knowing they needed both a win and Denver loss to San Antonio to secure the third seed, Lakers head coach JJ Redick said his group could not worry about factors outside their control. Instead, Redick stressed continuing to build chemistry and continuity with Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) having sustained injuries that will almost certainly keep Los Angeles’ top two scorers out for the start of the postseason.
James took charge early with six points and three assists in the opening seven minutes, including steals on consecutive defensive possessions that he turned into a layup and an Ayton alley-oop.
Nick Smith Jr. had 12 points after signing a two-year contract on Sunday, giving the Lakers another ballhandler with Doncic and Reaves hurt and making him eligible for the playoffs having previously been on a two-way deal.
Oscar Tshiebwe had 29 points and 17 rebounds for the Jazz, who ended the season losing 11 straight road games. Utah has lost 60 games in consecutive seasons, having dropped a franchise-record 65 games in 2024-25.
Jazz: Will wait for the results of the draft lottery for the fourth straight season.
Lakers: Host Houston on Saturday in Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart is defended by Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey (19) as he drives to the basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) goes up to shoot over Utah Jazz forward Blake Hinson (2) for a basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton (5) goes up to dunk as he is defended by Utah Jaz guard Bez Mbeng, bottom left, and forward Blake Hinson, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is defended by Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey, left, and Jazz forward Cody Williams as he drives to the basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is defended by Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey, left, and Jazz forward Cody Williams as he drives to the basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump delivered an extraordinary broadside against Pope Leo XIV on Sunday night, saying he didn't think the U.S.-born global leader of the Catholic Church is “doing a very good job” and that “he's a very liberal person," while also suggesting the pontiff should “stop catering to the Radical Left.”
Flying back to Washington from Florida, Trump used a lengthy social media post to sharply criticize Leo, then kept it up after deplaning, in comments on the tarmac to reporters.
“I’m not a fan of Pope Leo,” he said.
Trump's comments came after Leo suggested over the weekend that a “delusion of omnipotence” is fueling the U.S.-Israel war in Iran. While it’s not unusual for popes and presidents to be at cross purposes, it’s exceedingly rare for the pope to directly criticize a U.S. leader — and Trump’s stinging response is equally uncommon, if not more so.
“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” the president wrote in his post, adding, “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon."
He repeated that sentiment in comments to reporters, saying, “We don’t like a pope who says it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon.”
Later, Trump posted a picture suggesting he had saint-like powers akin to those of Jesus Christ. Wearing a biblical-style robe, Trump is seen laying hands on a bedridden man as light emanates from his fingers, while a soldier, a nurse, a praying woman and a bearded man in a baseball cap all look on admiringly. The sky above is filled with eagles, an American flag and vaporous images.
All of that came after Leo presided over an evening prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica on Saturday, the same day the United States and Iran began face-to-face negotiations in Pakistan during a fragile ceasefire. The pope didn’t mention the United States or Trump by name, but his tone and message appeared directed at Trump and U.S. officials, who have boasted of U.S. military superiority and justified the war in religious terms.
Leo — who is scheduled to leave Monday for an 11-day trip to Africa — has previously said that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.” He's also referenced an Old Testament passage from Isaiah, saying that “even though you make many prayers, I will not listen — your hands are full of blood.”
Before the ceasefire, when Trump warned of mass strikes against Iranian power plants and other infrastructure and that “an entire civilization will die tonight,” Leo described such sentiments as “truly unacceptable.”
In his social media post on Sunday night, however, Trump went far beyond the war in Iran in criticizing Leo.
The president wrote, “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a Country that was sending massive amounts of Drugs into the United States.” That was a reference to the Trump administration having ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January.
“I don’t want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do,” Trump added, referencing his 2024 election victory.
He also suggested in the post that Leo only got his position “because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump.”
“If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” Trump wrote, adding, “Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician. It’s hurting him very badly and, more importantly, it’s hurting the Catholic Church!”
In his subsequent comments to reporters, Trump remained highly critical, saying of Leo, “I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. He likes crime I guess” and adding, “He’s a very liberal person.”
In the 2024 election, Trump won 55% of Catholic voters, according to AP VoteCast, an extensive survey of the electorate. But Trump's administration also has close ties to conservative evangelical Protestant leaders and has claimed heavenly endorsement for the war on Iran.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth urged Americans to pray for victory “in the name of Jesus Christ.” And, when Trump was asked whether he thought God approved of the war, he said, “I do, because God is good — because God is good and God wants to see people taken care of.”
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, April 12, 2026, after he returned from Miami. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Pope Leo XIV delivers the Regina Coeli prayer in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, April 12, 2026, after he returned from Miami. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
