DALLAS, Texas (Kyodo) -- Forward Rui Hachimura welcomed the extra time off after the Los Angeles Lakers punched their ticket to the NBA playoffs with a 112-97 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday.

The 49-31 Lakers are currently third in the Western Conference and will finish the season no worse than sixth, avoiding the play-in tournament for the seventh and eighth seeds.

For Japan national basketball team star Hachimura, it means a chance to rest a left knee still affected by patellar tendinopathy that led to a 12-game absence through late March, followed by further limitations on his playing time.

"I really wanted to avoid the play-in tournament, so I'm really happy," said Hachimura, who sat out Tuesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder but was back to a full workload of nearly 38 minutes in Dallas.

Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 45 points, eight rebounds and six assists at the American Airlines Center, where he was loudly cheered by the Dallas crowd after spending almost seven years with the Mavericks until his trade to Los Angeles this season.

Hachimura contributed 15 points, including three three-pointers, and helped the Lakers regain control after his turnover gifted the Mavericks a wide-open shot from beyond the arc for an 87-85 lead three minutes into the fourth quarter.

The Lakers ran a play for Hachimura on their next trip down the floor, with the power forward draining a jump shot from just inside the free-throw line. He later stole the ball and drew a foul on the fast break, hitting both free-throw attempts for a 94-87 Lakers lead.

"I made some big mistakes in the second half, so I wanted to help us rally back by contributing defensively and in other ways," he said.