The door opened for Arthur Kaluma to show his worth for the Lakers in the NBA Summer League on Saturday night.
He did so in a big way.
Kaluma had 34 points and five rebounds during the Lakers’ 91-70 win over the Dallas Mavericks at the Thomas & Mack Center.
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He was 11 for 16 from the field and six for 10 from three-point range.
Read more: Adou Thiero shows progress while leading Lakers to Vegas Summer League win over Thunder
Late in the fourth quarter, Kaluma lined up a three-pointer, setting his feet and scoring from 29 feet out. He flashed three fingers and smiled. His teammates on the bench stood and cheered, as did the fans.
Kaluma played for the South Bay Lakers last season. He averaged 14.6 points per game, 4.9 rebounds and shot 55% from the field, 37% from three-point range.
Kaluma wasn’t alone in helping the Lakers improve to 2-0 in Summer League play.
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Adou Thiero ran the court, took a lob pass from Chris Mañon and threw down a two-handed dunk. He had another solid outing with 15 points and four rebounds. He shot just four for 12 from the field, but was a plus-15.
Lakers rookie guard Cameron Carr was unable to get more reps because of a right thumb contusion that kept him sidelined.
Carr, the 24th pick in the NBA draft, is averaging 17 points per game.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.