It was another disastrous night for the Los Angeles Lakers, and LeBron James didn't hold back as the organisation went 0-2 to start the season.
After being dominated by the Golden State Warriors, the Lakers lost their opening home game to the Los Angeles Clippers as Kawhi Leonard made his NBA return. It was a poor night offensively for the Lakers as they lost 103-97, and James took aim at his team-mates after the game.
But head coach Darvin Ham doesn't see anything wrong with what James said, as he reiterated that it's a 'grown man’s league'. His focus is purely on getting them ready for their next outing, with the Lakers desperately needing to end the unwanted streak.
The Lakers had an off day in the shooting department, as they only made 10 of their 40 three-point attempts, with Russell Westbrook missing all of his efforts. Westbrook has already recieved criticism from elsewhere, but James pointed the blame at him and the rest of the roster following the defeat.
"I think we’re getting great looks. But it could also be teams giving us great looks," James said. "Being completely honest, we’re not a team that’s constructed of great shooting. That’s just the truth of the matter. It’s not like we’re sitting here with a lot of lasers on our team."
Ham didn’t have any problem with James' comments, and called for confidence moving forward as a team. "The worst thing you can do is be wide open and hesitate or not take the shot," he said.
"It throws off the entire rhythm of what you’re trying to do offensively. And it seeps in a little bit of a disappointment going back toward the other end to get a stop. So I want our guys to be confident. I want them to know that I trust them to step up and shoot.
"It’s a grown man’s league. Things are gonna be said, whether it’s directed at someone or not. We’re just gonna handle it in stride.
"I’ve been around this league for 26 years. I’ve been on quiet teams and I’ve been on loud teams. I have the utmost respect for those guys. I believe they have the utmost respect for me.
"There’s nothing taken personal about anything. We address it and we move on." The Lakers will have the opportunity to put things right back at home against the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday, but pressure is really mounting on the squad.
