Lakers collapse in LeBron's absence against the Thunder.
After blowing an embarrassing 26 points lead in last week's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Lakers blew another huge lead again tonight, this time a 19-points-lead, falling to the Thunder 107–104. With tonight's frustrating loss, The Lakers fall to 5–4 on the season and snap a three-game winning streak.
The Lakers' collapse came in the 4th quarter of tonight's loss, allowing Oklahoma City to score 35 points behind a 28 points performance from the young star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Gilgeous-Alexander put an absolute silence in the Staples Center crowd after knocking down a logo three from the top of the key to give the Thunder a six-point lead, helping them get their second win of the season, both being against the Lakers.
LeBron James sat down once more on Thursday after the Lakers announced that he would be out for at least a week due to an abdominal strain. Anthony Davis sprained his thumb while chasing down a loose ball just before halftime, giving Lakers fans additional anxiety. Davis didn't return until the third quarter with his thumb wrapped, but he finished with a double-double of 29 points and 17 rebounds in 37 minutes. After the Game, Davis told the media his thumb was "fine" later asked if he'll play against Trail Blazers on Saturday, saying, "We'll see how it feels."
Shooting over 50% from three this season, Carmelo Anthony finished with a game-high five threes in the contest on 5 of 10 shooting from beyond the arc, ending the night with 21 points in 31 minutes off the bench. Melo helped the Lakers with a couple of clutch late-game three to give them an opportunity to lead or tie the game. Melo spoke on the frustrating loss after the game, saying, "We shouldn't have lost this one. We let this one go."
Russell Westbrook had a couple of opportunities to give the Lakers a tie or lead late in the game, costly losing the ball with 21.0 seconds late in the game with the Lakers down two. With 7.8 seconds remaining, Westbrook had another chance to tie the game, this time hitting the back iron on a contested three. Head coach Frank Vogel spoke on what he thought of the look Westbrook got for the final shot, saying:
"Not good enough. We want to get a better shot than that. The spacing wasn't great, we were trying to get Melo to the top of the floor, but the spacing wasn't great."
Westbrook finished tonight's game with over 20 points for the third straight game, scoring 27 points on 10 of 23 (43%) shooting from the field while adding 6 rebounds and 5 assists in the contest.
At the end of the day, the Lakers should not lose (twice) against a rebuilding Thunder team while blowing big leads. The Lakers have not looked like a championship-contending playoff team. No matter the injuries they've sustained to start the season, they shouldn't lose to a Thunder team that would have zero wins if it weren't for the Lakers.
This Saturday, the Lakers' next matchup is against the 3–5 Portland Trail Blazers as they move on into their next matchup without LeBron James and possibly Anthony Davis.