Not helping the 2-10 Lakers is how they have performed down the stretch in close games, with or without LeBron James
Anthony Davis had the hint of a wry grin Friday night when he heard the question about the Lakers’ basketball IQ. If he wasn’t so angry, he might just laugh.in the loss to the Sacramento Kings“I think we’ve got to do a better job of having an awareness of time, score, situation,” Davis said. “For example, like the end of the first half, they’re going on a run, 6-0 run. ‘Aight, slow it down. We’ve got to get a quality look.’ Even if you miss, they’re not getting out in transition.
It shouldn’t be much of a surprise that a team that hasn’t won games – period – hasn’t looked good in close games. But sometimes numbers paint a compelling picture: The Lakers, a team with LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook, are one of the worst clutch-performing teams in the NBA, with a minus-35.2 net rating in their five games that have been within five points in the last five minutes. That’s 28th in the league, above just the Orlando Magic and Chicago Bulls.
Lonnie Walker IV was asked if that letdown told the story of the game in and of itself: “It kind of tells the story of just how the season’s been. … We had the tendency of, along with myself, allowing to take bad shots or just self-sabotage. We could play smarter overall.”most notably a loss to Portland that saw the Lakers leading by seven points with 1:56 remaining
Ham said he would put Westbrook in those situations again if given the choice – but perhaps without James and getting unsatisfactory return from other reserves, there might not be much choice available.
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