Los Angeles Lakers entered the game vs New Orleans hoping to leave behind their struggles and turn the page.
However, that was not the case for LeBron James and co. The Pelicans rallied past Los Angeles 123-95 to achieve their second consecutive win.
On the other side, the Lakers dropped the 7th of their last 10 and fell to 27-33, which ranks them ninth in the West. The Lakers had a horrific third quarter that allowed the Pelicans to take a 65-95 lead.
They allowed 44 points and scored just 25 being a minus 73.7 as a team during this stint. The Lakers could not recover from a terrible third quarter and eventually suffered another painful defeat.
CJ and JV two-man game 💯@PelicansNBA rolling on ESPN pic.twitter.com/vuA7nbpXaz — NBA (@NBA) February 28, 2022
James could be considered the only bright spot with 32 points, six rebounds and three assists, shooting at 56 percent from the field. However, he could not prevent a sinking Lakers team from another loss.
The team struggles on both ends of the floor. They allowed 112.3 points per 100 possessions in the last 10 games, being, at most, mediocre (14th) in stopping their opponents. Things are getting worse on offense, where they ranked 21st with 108.8 per 100 possessions.
LeBron James vs Pelicans 32 Points 6 Rebounds 3 Assists 2 Steals 2 Blocks 56% FG Lakers lose by 28. Lakers are 3-7 in their last 10 games. #NBA #Lakers #LeBron Yikes… pic.twitter.com/tmSw9Xbq4E — Hedge_out (@hedge_out) February 28, 2022
Since the Lakers came back from the break, they have been down further in offensive production, with 95.2 points per 100 possessions in the last two games against the Clippers and the Pelicans.
The Lakers are undoubtedly flawed as a team. They don’t have the shooting (34.5 percent for the season) to open lanes for Westbrook and James. At the same time, they don’t seem to have the chemistry to cover for their flaws.
In addition, Anthony Davis is again out with a foot injury that will keep him sidelined for 4-5 more weeks. The Lakers will need to figure things out fast with 22 games remaining for the end of the regular season.
They are currently the ninth seed and find themselves only 2 1/2 games ahead of Portland, who has the same record as New Orleans, but is out of the playoff picture presently via tiebreaker.
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