NBA : The Lakers are really tired!

NBA – With four defeats in five games since winning the NBA Cup, The Lakers are in dire straits. LeBron James and his team-mates are exhausted, but there’s still the year to go…

The banner that was hung to celebrate victory in the NBA Cup is currently being paid for dearly in Los Angeles. Since winning the final against Indiana, the Lakers have lost four of their last five games, including three in a row, most recently in Chicago.

The Californian defence is in dire straits and the team as a whole is running out of steam and energy. Quite simply, it’s on its knees. LeBron James confirms this.

“It’s emotional and physical fatigue. It’s fatigue linked to the toughness of the season,” the King tells the Los Angeles Times. “When you don’t win, then, obviously, there’s a fatigue of frustration.”

Despite this bad patch, Darvin Ham is asking his players to grit their teeth. “We fought as hard as we could. Our competitive spirit is there. We can’t let it get us down or discouraged,” says the coach.

The East leader and the two West leaders to come

It’s hard not to cringe for the Lakers when they take a look at the calendar for the end of the calendar year. Between now and 31 December, eleven days from now, Los Angeles will play six games! And not just any games: Minnesota twice, Oklahoma City and Boston will all be on the schedule.

“It’s going to force us to play. We’re going to have to, otherwise we’ll be beaten soundly,” says Anthony Davis. “We’ve got some big games coming up. These will be three good tests for us defensively. That’s where it starts for us, to get our attack going. And that starts on Thursday night (at Wolves).

The 2020 champions will be able to take a breather at the start of 2024, with just three matches in the first eight days of the year. But before they can rest, they need to finish the year as best they can…

“There’s no break, no help coming. The cavalry isn’t going to arrive. We have to do it ourselves, in this dressing room,” says Anthony Davis. “We’ve got to get the injured players back. We have to find a way to win again. It’s obvious that when you lose a few in a row, you start to feel it. Everyone wants to win. All you have to do is win a game, get your morale back and move forward.