Ugly losses produce frustrated locker rooms, and given what happened Wednesday at Lakers against the Kings, it’s no surprise that people are upset.
“It was a game we needed and we came out with all the energy. Both ends of the ground, » Anthony Davis said. “Then the second quarter dictated the game.”
The Kings outscored the Lakers by 24 in that quarter en route to a 130-120 victory in Los Angeles. The Lakers, thanks to this early energy, took a 19-point lead in the first quarter. They led by 18 when Davis picked up his second foul late in the first and removed himself from the game. The Kings scored 53 of the next 73 points to stun the Lakers.
“It sucks,” Davis said.
It got worse.
Lakers forward Rui Hachimura (28) attempts a rebound in front of Kings forward Harrison Barnes (40) and Lakers teammate Anthony Davis (3) on Wednesday at Crypto.com Arena.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
At the end of the fourth quarter, LeBron James grimaced and returned to the locker room after a Lakers timeout, with the team’s 39-year-old star continuing to suffer ankle pain despite treatment during the All-Star break that cost him two Lakers games.
“It’s just my ankle. This is exactly what I had to face before and after the break. I’m handling it the best I can,” James said. “I played the whole third, sat out a little bit to start the fourth and when I came back it was kind of – whatever. It’s just something I have to deal with.
James scored 31 points Wednesday, the fourth time he has had at least 30 since the break.
Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (10) plays tight defense against Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3) on Wednesday at Crypto.com Arena.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
“Everything will be fine,” he said.
The injury scare helped shield the Lakers from some of the harsher truths regarding their second-quarter collapse.
“Some of the things we were in defensively allowed them to do that, allowed De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk to get what they wanted. Live in the painting,” Davis said. “And if I will help, then [Domantas] Sabonis is wide open. So, uh, they did a good job of manipulating what we were doing.
Fox scored 44, Monk 26 and Sabonis 16 points, 20 rebounds and 12 assists.
And the inability to get stops put the Lakers in a funk they couldn’t escape.
“Frustration makes us all cowards, as does fatigue. You try to get something back, you start going out alone or you [get] preoccupied, which is something you can’t control, like refereeing. Instead of just figuring out how you can play, make saves. And a lot of times it’s just about competing harder. … When we play like that, that physicality, that has to be our identity. That’s where we showed it when we play like that, things are going well for us.
