In what most considered a must-win game, the Los Angeles Lakers stumbled after a strong start and lost to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.
The Lakers looked like they were going to roll the Kings after going up by as many as 19 points in the first quarter, but fell apart on both ends shortly after.
De’Aaron Fox tied his career-high in points with 44, while Malik Monk lit up his former team with 26 points off the bench.
Anthony Davis had a subpar game due to foul trouble and head coach Darvin Ham acknowledged it impacted his ability to defend Domantas Sabonis, believing he should have challenged his fourth foul in the third quarter that sent the center to the bench.
“Absolutely,” Ham said. “A ton. That’s on me too, I probably should’ve challenged when they called his fourth foul. Everybody, you look at the bench and they’re looking at the replay and it could be 50-50. But next time, I’ll definitely just say to hell with it and do it. That’s definitely on me.
“But having said that, Sabonis is gonna throw his body around, he’s gonna make you feel him on both sides of the ball. He’s a physical, athletic, quick, elite player. He’s an All-Star for a reason. Just the way he playmakes, sets screens, gets in and out of screens really fast and you got those two guys running around with shooters on the floor with him, they’re a handful. Again, No. 2 in the league in passes per possession. So it’s tough. But no one is gonna feel sorry for you, we have to figure this out, figure them out. They’ve won three times now so to hell with the season series. But just for us, when we see these types of teams, these quick and fast teams, we have to figure it out. A lot of times it’s us being physical defensively, being physical off the ball, taking the challenge and also being physical offensively and trusting what we’re trying to do in terms of playing with pace, running habits, setting screens, taking care of the ball, passing on time and on target and making the simple plays and guys being shot aggressive.”
Davis was not pleased with how he was officiated as he felt some of the calls were overblown. “Yeah, it was questionable foul calls,” Davis said. “ It’s tough to play in foul trouble, you don’t want to pick up any cheap ones. But yeah, when I’m not on the floor, our defense is a different team.”
As for whether or not Ham challenging his fourth foul would’ve done anything, Davis wasn’t sure. “I don’t know. I don’t know.”
Officiating around the league has been below standard for most of the 2023-24 season, but the Lakers don’t really have anyone else to blame but themselves for their embarrassing loss.
Darvin Ham diagnoses what went wrong for Lakers against Kings
Postgame, Ham explained that the Lakers simply didn’t sustain their style of play after the first quarter and that’s why they ultimately lost.
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