After losing to the Orlando Magic in heartbreaking fashion, the Los Angeles Lakers had to turn around and face off against a Denver Nuggets team that’s had their number the past few years.
Even though the Nuggets were missing Aaron Gordon, they had no problem blowing out the Lakers in dominant fashion in the second half. Los Angeles looked like they had solved their woes against Denver as they built a 10-point lead in the first half before completely letting go of the rope in the third quarter.
Third quarters have been the team’s Achilles heel for a while now, but their showing against the Nuggets was beyond disappointing as they let Denver do anything they wanted on both ends of the floor. Between the third and fourth quarters, the Nuggets rattled off a 50-17 run that completely derailed any hope of the Lakers coming back to win.
Head coach JJ Redick pointed out that Los Angeles simply didn’t compete in the third but emphasized that the group would figure things out.
“Schematically, certainly we’ll have to review some stuff,” Redick said. “Clearly the spirit to compete just wasn’t there… We’ll solve it like we solve other problems, but actually, we’ll do that internally.”
Redick also refused to believe that Los Angeles struggled because of their previous troubles with Denver, instead reiterating the team’s overall lack of competitive spirit in the second half.
“I had a pretty clear idea of what happened,” Redick said. “But whatever it was, it was not because we were haunted by the ghosts of the past or something like that. It was kind of obvious to me what happened there. [It] was just not the right spirit.”
While Redick wouldn’t admit to it, it did feel like some members of the Lakers were demoralized after the Nuggets went on their run. It’s the same story that happens nearly every time the two teams play as L.A. will race out to a lead just for Denver to respond and take the win.
Losers of two straight, Redick and the coaching staff will need to figure out a way to right the ship. Unfortunately, the road ahead doesn’t get any easier as they take on the Phoenix Suns next.
LeBron James believes every game is test for Lakers
Although Los Angeles recently had their winning streak, there’s still a lot the team has to prove. Prior to the Nuggets game, LeBron James acknowledged that every game is a test for the Lakers given how stacked the Western Conference is.
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