It was always going to be an uphill battle for the Los Angeles Lakers to take down the Los Angeles Clippers with LeBron James sitting out. But Darvin Ham’s team showed a lot of fight, despite ultimately coming up short in the end.
While it will go down as a double-digit loss, the Lakers were in the game in the fourth quarter, cutting a 13-point halftime deficit to just two with under eight minutes remaining in the game. It could have been a blowout, but the Lakers were in it until the end and Ham attributed that to the team just going out and playing ball the right way and locking in defensively.
“I just think guys were just playing natural basketball, not trying to force anything, taking advantages of certain cross matches, mismatches,” Ham said after the game. “Really being organized and communicating, seeing what we wanted to get out of every offensive possession.
“Then defensively, us having stretches where there were phenomenal plays made. Sometimes in the first half, there were a couple instances where we had a few breakdowns. But as the game got longer, our defense got stronger.”
The Lakers certainly were much better defensively in the second half, particularly in the fourth quarter when they allowed just 21 points to the Clippers. Eventually, the Clippers were able to get going and pull away, but Ham attributed that to them making tough shots as opposed to the Lakers completely breaking down.
“I mean, we had a couple breakdowns. But for the most part, they made some tough shots,” Ham added. “Austin Reaves had a couple possessions where you can’t play any better defense on James or Kawhi. DLo had a huge block on defensive transition. Our guys competed.
“They competed their butts off but again, whatever mistake, if you close out the wrong way or if you’re not doubling in a timely fashion, they’re gonna make you pay and that’s just who they are, how they’re built. But we didn’t get discouraged, got disappointed a couple times, but we didn’t get discouraged. We fought through and had the next play mentality.”
Now is not the time for moral victories as the Lakers need wins, but it is still encouraging to see the team hang with one of the best teams in the league without one of their two superstars in James. But Ham was still proud of the effort he saw from the Lakers.
“I think the lesson tonight was just how we competed, how we competed together,” Ham said “Guys taking accountability for mistakes and not making them twice, trying to get better defensively as the game was ticking away. Disappointed in the loss but I’m proud of how our guys competed minus LeBron.”
Now it is simply a matter of consistency. If the Lakers can compete at this level every night, with a healthy roster, they could finally begin to resemble the team Ham felt they could be at the start of the season.
Darvin Ham commends D’Angelo Russell for staying professional amidst trade rumors
One of the reasons the Lakers kept things close against the Clippers was another strong showing from D’Angelo Russell, who led the team with 27 points and 10 assists. The point guard has ben mentioned in a ton of trade rumors but has locked in recently and Ham commended him for it.
“First of all, he’s done a wonderful job being a pro about all of it,” Ham said. “There’s so much stuff that we can’t control. With that said, he’s just really locked in on his game, focused on ways he can help the team. Communicating, competing.”
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
