Losing to rival LA Clippers, LeBron James and Lakers coach blamed it on... the fixture
With only 3 games left on the Regular Season schedule and hopes of reaching the Playoffs higher than ever, the Los Angeles Lakers have made a difficult decision, which is to accept the use of the strongest lineup in the encounter. LA Clippers forehead.
Called "acceptable" because the whole team has just gone through a series of matches with a tight schedule, plus many stars like LeBron James, Anthony Davis or D'Angelo Russell are not in the best shape after injury.
In the end, this was a failed bet attempt as the Lakers continued to lose to the LA Clippers with a score of 125-118. The longest gap between the two teams has reached 24 points.
The question is whether to bet on the health of the stars at this sensitive time, when the Lakers players should have been able to rest to exert their strength in the last two Regular Season matches ( meet Suns and Jazz).
"This was one of the hardest games we've had all season," LeBron James said after heating up late, scoring 30 out of 33 points in the second half.
“Just finished a long series of away matches, only had to play yesterday and still have to play extra time. This is an example of how the schedule can sometimes affect a team's performance and competitiveness. We've certainly been affected by this."
Coach Darvin Ham initially did not guarantee Anthony Davis and LeBron James would be on the field immediately after the extra-time victory over Utah Jazz, a match that took place less than 24 hours earlier. But later, both LeBron and Anthony were "green light".
All game, Davis had 17 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks in the second game in two days. This is the first time in nearly half a year that Anthony Davis has played both back-to-back matches.
"I'm not feeling very well but everyone don't worry, I'll be fine," the Los Angeles Lakers bigman told reporters.
Up to the match against LA Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers had spent 8 days of sublimation in form but extremely "tortured" physically, they played 4 games in these 8 days, all away.
The trip included two days of events, one of which was a blizzard in Minneapolis (which caused the entire team to change their travel schedule, losing time to rest) and an overtime match in Utah.
When he returned to the Lakers to play on the LA Clippers' field, LeBron James and his teammates were no longer fit and had to play their second game in two days. On the other hand, on the other side of the front line is a group that has just rested for 3 days in a row.
"Everybody goes through days like this in the NBA schedule, unfortunately for us we have to get through it at the most important moment of the season," head coach Darvin Ham said after the loss to the LA Clippers.
The result of the match brought the LA Clippers from 7th to 5th in the Western rankings, surpassing the Golden State Warriors with a record of 42-38. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers staggered in the play-in group with a 41-39 record.
Hope to enter the Playoffs is still for the Lakers with the condition that they win the last 2 games (against the Suns and Jazz), and at the same time expect Golden State to lose 1 game (against the Kings and Blazers).
With no autonomy in hand, LeBron James says it doesn't matter which position or group anymore. He and his teammates will fight whether starting from the Playoffs or the play-in series.
“Whatever happens, it will happen. We will accept," James said. "We don't have a choice, we can't afford to put ourselves in a safe position. So wherever we are, we will fight and play good basketball. My best to hope to continue, that's all."
