On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Lakers nearly blew a double-digit lead to the San Antonio Spurs, a team that came into the contest with the worst record in the Western Conference and a 17-game losing streak. The Lakers held on to win by three points, but head coach Darvin Ham issued a warning afterward that they needed to do a better job of taking care of business.
The Spurs’ late run on Wednesday turned out to be a portent of what transpired on Friday between the same two teams.
They started the game by blitzing L.A. and getting out to a 42-22 lead at the end of the first quarter. It meant they had put up a total of 87 points in the fourth quarter on Wednesday and the first quarter on Friday against LeBron James and company.
The Lakers were without Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell and Cam Reddish on Friday. As short-handed as they were, they were never really able to threaten the home team.
Los Angeles went on a brief spurt to come to within 69-64 early in the third quarter. But Victor Wembanyama and crew quickly increased their lead back into double-digit territory, and they ended up winning 129-115.
Wembanyama made his presence felt on the defensive end, and the Lakers couldn’t innoculate themselves with a solution. He had 13 points, 15 rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocked shots, but those two blocks don’t tell the whole story, as he seemingly altered countless other shots at or near the rim.
Even though the Lakers continually left the Spurs open from 3-point range, their offense was equally deficient. They shot just 30.6% from downtown, continuing a season-long problem, and they got outscored by 21 points from that distance. They were able to keep pace statistically with San Antonio in almost every other key category, which highlights their problems both in terms of 3-point makes and attempts.
What made this loss even more painful for L.A. was how inept the Spurs have been all season. It ended its three-game road trip with two losses, and it now holds a 15-11 record and seventh place in the West, which seems disappointing given its roster and its high hopes when the season started.
Taurean Prince: B
Prince went 5-of-10 from the field to score 12 points, but he cooled off a bit from the outside, as he converted two of his six 3-point attempts. In 36 minutes, he added three rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block.
Austin Reaves: A-minus
Reaves moved into the starting lineup for this game, and he put forth an admirable effort. At times, it looked like he was trying to will the Lakers back into the game. He took a team-high 18 shot attempts, making eight of them, and he went 4-of-10 from downtown.
The guard finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes.
Max Christie: D
Without Davis, Russell and Reddish, the Lakers needed an all-hands-on-deck effort to win. Christie didn’t pull his weight, as he shot 1-of-6 and scored just two points. His only other positive contribution in 23 minutes was one assist.
Jaxson Hayes: A-minus
Hayes made a nice effort in 19 minutes. He made all but one of his four shot attempts to score eight points while grabbing seven rebounds and blocking one shot. However, his effort got him into foul trouble.
He had to exit with 7:39 left in the first quarter after picking up two quick fouls, and he picked up his fifth foul early in the third quarter.
LeBron James: B
Despite his team’s inability to consistently hit from the outside, and despite getting hit in the face three times, James managed to record 14 assists. But he shot only 7-of-17 from the field and scored 23 points, which is low for him, especially considering how well he has played this season.
This loss isn’t necessarily on James, but the Lakers could’ve used more from him at some critical junctures.
Rui Hachimura: A-minus
Hachimura may be starting to figure things out after a disappointing and injury-riddled start to the year. He scored 20 points and shot 8-of-15 from the field, although he missed all five of his 3-point attempts. The forward also contributed five rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes.
Christian Wood: A-minus
For one of the few times so far this season, Wood looked like his old self. He scored a season-high 17 points while shooting 6-of-10 overall and 2-of-5 from downtown. He also had eight rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots in 30 minutes in what was a very nice and impressive overall performance for him.
However, Wood only went 3-of-8 from the free throw line. He was a big reason why the Lakers as a team only shot 64.3% from the charity stripe on Friday.
Jarred Vanderbilt: B
Vanderbilt brought down five rebounds in 13 minutes, but like Hayes, he got into foul trouble. He committed a total of four fouls, and perhaps that limited his effectiveness.
He didn’t score a single point, and he missed all three of his shot attempts.
Colin Castleton: B
Castleton came in during garbage time once Ham waived the white flag in the fourth quarter. In five minutes, the rookie big man made all three of his shot attempts and added one rebound, one assist and one steal.
D'Moi Hodge: B-plus
In a rare appearance, Hodge, an undrafted rookie guard, made two of his three shot attempts, which included a 3-pointer, and had three assists in eight minutes.
