The Lakers’ promising season quickly went off the rails. Since winning the NBA In-Season Tournament, the Lakers have lost 10 of their last 13 matches.
As the losses kept coming, so did the frustration of the players in the Lakers’ locker room.
The Lakers’ losing streak increased to four after a 113-127 loss at home to the Memphis Grizzlies.
After the match, LeBron James expressed his disappointment, downplayed what he did in the NBA In-Season Tournament and assessed the team’s current position.
“That championship is just a small part,” James said about the Lakers’ NBA In-Season Tournament championship.
“Everyone is raving about the win in Vegas and keeps mentioning it. It was only two games.
That’s the concern, we went and won the NBA In-Season Tournament, but really just two matches,” James said.
In Las Vegas, the Lakers destroyed the New Orleans Pelicans with a 44-point margin in the semi-finals, before defeating the Indiana Pacers 123-109 in the final to become the first team to win the In-Season Tournament.
However, they have declined steadily since then. The Lakers have only a 3-10 record since the tournament in Las Vegas. While their two defeated champions, Pelicans (9-4) and Pacers (8-6), are both flying high with 5 consecutive victories.
James said about the current state of the Lakers: “We’re in a bad place right now.” The King declined to comment on whether the current problems appeared recently, or have been there since the beginning of the season.
Since winning the tournament on December 9, the most notable difference has been the decline in the Lakers’ defense. Over the team’s 13-game stretch, they have scored 118.7 points per 100 possessions, and have a top-10 defensive rating during that span.
Look at the Lakers’ numbers before and after the In-Season Tournament championship to see how the players have fallen.
The Lakers have never been a strong team on offense, but defensive excellence is the foundation for them to achieve good results. Therefore, when the defense is no longer certain, failures come to them as inevitable. Some injuries are the reason why the Lakers are struggling, but that is not the main reason.
With frustration growing, it is also reported that head coach Darvin Ham faces the risk of being sacked after losing the dressing room.
James’ recent assessment of the Lakers may be the biggest sign yet that a radical change is underway in Los Angeles. If they want to turn things around, this is the ideal time to do it.
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