NBA – Beaten by the Celtics, the Californians saw just how far they still have to go to join the best teams in the league at the moment.
The win over the Thunder was a welcome reaction to stop the bleeding. But the Lakers were unable to repeat the feat against Boston, losing to the Celtics after a controlled game. First of all, Los Angeles failed to get off to a flying start, conceding a 12-0 lead.
Then, LeBron James and his gang never managed to overturn Joe Mazzulla’s players. The game was tied at the start of the second half, before Boston picked up the pace again.
“We were a bit lethargic, after travelling for so long and with the circumstances of Christmas. It took us a while to get going,” Darvin Ham told the Los Angeles Times. “We had some good shots at the start of the game. We lost a few balls. But if you look at our shots and Boston’s, theirs went in.”
Lakers still searching
The Celtics also have an advantage over their historic rivals: a certain continuity and an irremovable front five, whereas the Lakers’ front five is still shaky.
“Their front five has been virtually intact since the start of the season,” continued the Californian coach. “We’re still looking. Some players are dominant in attack, others in defence, and we’re looking for a balance. Injuries have affected our cohesion.
LeBron James confirms this. “We’re not healthy at the moment. We’re not where we want to be to compete with the best teams,” concedes the King, again for the Los Angeles Times.
And let’s not forget the fatigue that has weighed heavily over the last few weeks on a squad that made a huge effort to win the NBA Cup. But since absentees are always wrong, injuries are no excuse for Austin Reaves.
“We know there are some absentees but, deep down, in the dressing room, we see hard-working players,” says the full-back. “There are intelligent players, leaders like LeBron and Anthony Davis. They know basketball, they know what we need to be better. We need to find a way to help them and we’ll keep improving. We’re not going to give up, that’s obvious.
Still time to build momentum
The Lakers have now lost 6 of their last 8 games, including a win over the very weak Spurs in addition to their loss at Oklahoma City. So there’s not much to celebrate, and there are still three games to be played in four days, between 28 and 31 December.
“It’s obvious that the squad and I think we can beat any team we come up against,” says Austin Reaves. “If we don’t have that vision, then what’s the point? We have that mindset. We need to tighten things up, lay the foundations and get going. Every time we get on the floor, we have that confidence. We have the talent and the opportunities to win games.
The 2020 champions have played almost 40% of the regular season. How would you sum up their season so far?
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