Only two weeks ago, the Los Angeles Lakers were second in the loaded Western Conference and boasted the best defense in the league.
Fast forward to today, the Lakers (43-28) find themselves tied for the fourth to fifth seed with the Memphis Grizzlies (43-28) following Tuesday’s 118-106 loss to the Orlando Magic on the road for their third straight loss.
Things quickly change in the NBA if you let your guard down. And that’s what Luka Dončić hammered to the Lakers after his third straight 30-point game ended in another brutal loss.
“I think we just got a little bit satisfied,” Doncic told reporters. “We can’t afford that right now.”
The Lakers had the Magic at bay when they took a 60-51 lead with 1:15 left in the first half. But they allowed a 7-0 run that completely turned the tide.
With momentum on their side, the Magic outscored the Lakers 34-18 in the third quarter to wrest control of the game and never looked back.
“I think we just got to look back the way we played on that eight-game winning streak,” Dončić told reporters. “We’re physical. We played a hell of a defense.”
The Lakers have the worst defense in the league over their last three games, allowing 130.4 points per 100 possessions.
With their lackadaisical defense, it did not matter even if Dončić and LeBron James combined to score 56 points.
As their offense struggled, their energy on defense was non-existent, especially in the pivotal third quarter.
“We got to play the whole basketball game,” Dončić lamented, “not just 24 minutes. “It’s got to be all 48 [minutes].”
The Lakers did not even play for the whole first 24 minutes of the game as they let go of the rope in the final 75 seconds of the opening half.
Lakers in Tough Spot
The Lakers are in a precarious situation with only three weeks left in the regular season.
They are just two games ahead of the sixth-seeded Golden State Warriors (41-30) and three games ahead of their crosstown rivals Los Angeles Clippers (40-31) and Minnesota Timberwolves (41-32), who are virtually tied for the seventh seed.
The Lakers have the toughest schedule left among this group — fourth-toughest overall according to Tankathon, making their last 11 games a make-or-break for them.
“First we got to get into the playoffs,” Dončić told reporters. “There’s nothing guaranteed in this league.”
Four of those 11 games are against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, the top two teams of their conference. They will also face the Grizzlies and the Warriors, two teams breathing down their necks.
‘We Need Adversity’
Dončić refused to blame the schedule after having played eight games in 11 nights and key players in and out of the lineup during the Lakers’ toughest stretch of the season.
“Obviously, it’s hard but we get paid to do that,” Dončić said. “So, that shouldn’t be an excuse. Everybody at some point has a tough schedule. We got to look at how we’re playing and we just got to be better.”
Forward Dorian Finney-Smith, who had 14 points and seven rebounds against the Magic, chose to see the brighter side of things.
“We need the adversity,” Finney-Smith told reporters. “Especially being a new team, we get to learn a lot about each other during tough times. You usually don’t see things when you’re winning. So we got the chance to grow. We’re going to use this opportunity to grow.”
The homestretch will show what these Lakers are made of.
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