Lakers lose 4th straight in loss to Clippers.
The Lakers suffered their fourth straight loss, dropping their season record to 2–9 after losing to the Clippers, 114–101, who were without star player Kawhi Leonard.
“We’re starting to figure everything out offensively. Defense is self-inflicted,” said Anthony Davis.
Even though the Lakers were almost at full strength (minus Walker IV, Schröder, and Bryant) in Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers with the return of LeBron, it was the same old story for the Lakers: inconsistency and a second-half meltdown.
The Lakers gave their best inconsistency outing in Wednesday’s loss than in any other game they've played this season, having a horrible first quarter in which they allowed 38 points, then a bounceback second quarter in which they only gave up 16 points with a stellar 16–2 run to get the score even at one point.
Coming out of the second half slowly has been one of the Lakers' most prominent issues this season, and they couldn't adapt to the Clippers' halftime adjustments in their zone defense and doubles in the post. This is the type of defense the Lakers have seen plenty of this season with their lack of spacing.
LeBron appeared to injure his groin during an offensive post-play against Paul George in the fourth quarter, going straight to the locker room after walking away tenderly. Giving all of Lakers Nation the biggest "oh no" moment of the season (so far, *fingers crossed).
“I feel good besides the injury. When I landed, I felt a little spasm or strain in my groin,” said LeBron.
LeBron finished with a game-high 30 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals in 32 minutes of action.
After a four-rebound game in Monday’s loss to the Jazz, Anthony Davis had a bounce-back game, crashing the boards for the Lakers despite having zero cushion to roam at the four spot with 9 rebounds on the night.
“We know how good we are defensively, and we've shown it. We have guys out. We're not at full strength,” said Davis.
Davis finished second on the team in scoring with 21 points on 56% (9-for-16) shooting in 35 minutes.
The Lakers’ next matchup is at home this Friday against the struggling 4–6 Sacramento Kings at 7:30 PM on Spectrum SportsNet.
