Despite strong individual performances, the LA Lakers failed to deliver against arch-rival Los Angeles Clippers, losing the game 119 to 115.
In one of the most anticipated games of the month for both the Lakers and Clippers fans, the Clip City faithfuls came out the happy ones. With LeBron James back on the court, after being cleared to play through the NBA’s health protocols, expectations were high around Staples Center. And while the game was everything it was billed to be, the Clippers are the ones leaving with the “W”, snapping the Lakers 2-game winning streak.
The game started out as one would expect – the two teams were at each others throats, trading basket for basket, with the Clippers edging out the Lakers by one point at the end of the first quarter. The Clippers, who ended up never trailing throughout the entire game, added another 2 points to their lead before half time.
Fans at the Staples Center expected the Lakers to come out the locker room strong and stage a comeback in the second half, as they have done many times in the past. But the Clippers defended well and the third finished 34-29 in favor of the “visitors”. The Lakers pushed hard in the final quarter of the game, managing to erase most of the Clippers lead, but former Pistons guard Luke Kennard proved to be the cool head the team needed, scoring 19 points and hitting two 3-pointers in the final minutes of the game to keep the Lakers away from the victory celebration.
The Lakers cannot be accused of trying, though. LeBron James, playing his first game after missing the Sacramento game in isolation, had a double-double with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Anthony Davis performed similarly, scoring 27 points with 10 rebounds and 4 assists. Malik Monk had another impressive performance, netting 20 points in 29 minutes of game-play. Carmelo Anthony and Russell Westbrook rounded up the team’s double-digit scorer list, with 13 and 10 points respectively.
For the Los Angeles Clippers, only Marcus Morris managed to break over twenty points, scoring 21 at Staples Center. But the Clippers tapped into the whole team, with six players scoring in the double digits, including Paul George, who went in for 19 points on Friday night.
With the loss against the Clippers, the Lakers are back at 0.500 with a 12-12 record, and remain trailing the Clips at the 7th spot on the Western Conference table. They will stay home and rest for the next game coming up on Tuesday, when they have to welcome the Boston Celtics.
