Defense doesn’t get the job done in Lakers fifth straight defeat
Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr. challenges a shot by Suns guard Leandro Barbosa in the first quarter.
From the very first day of training camp, Lakers Coach Luke Walton wanted one thing more than anything else: He wanted strong defense from a team that was one of the league’s worst defensively last season.
Friday night at Staples Center, the Lakers lost to the Phoenix Suns, 119-115, in a game that showed that effort is still a work in progress. It was the Lakers’ fifth consecutive loss, keeping them winless in December.
The Suns led by as many as 18 points before the Lakers mounted a furious comeback, as they have so many times this season. It wasn’t enough to break the Lakers’ lull. They dropped to 10-15 while the Suns improved to 7-16, thanks in part to Eric Bledsoe’s 30 points and nine assists.
“Part of it was the focus, part of it is being young [and] part of it is still trying to figure out the way that we want to do things,” Walton said. “The effort and fight was great again tonight but things need to go perfect once you dig yourselves that big of a hole.”
Lakers backup guard Lou Williams scored 35 points on 10-for-19 shooting with six three-pointers. It was the third time in four games Williams scored at least 35 points.
“It feels the same as not scoring a bunch of points and losing,” Williams said. “Losing is losing. We’re not in the business of moral victories. So for me it’s trying to do everything I can in my position to help us win games and it’s still not enough.”
The Lakers have relied on Williams’ offense to carry them as they’ve worked to get past the losses of two of their best scorers.
Starting point guard D’Angelo Russell and starting shooting guard Nick Young remain out with injuries — a sore left knee in Russell’s case, a strained right calf muscle for Young. The Lakers also lacked backup center Tarik Black and backup point guard Jose Calderon. Brandon Ingram started at point guard while Jordan Clarkson started at shooting guard.
The Lakers allowed the Suns 62 points in the first half. Phoenix closed the second quarter with a 10-2 run to take a 10 point lead, and by the start of the fourth quarter, the Suns had 89 points.
In the fourth quarter, Williams orchestrated a backward four-point play. He made a first free throw, missed the second, then got the ball back after Thomas Robinson rebounded the miss. Williams’ three-pointer brought the Lakers within five points.
Defensive breakdowns by the Lakers, though, allowed the Suns to keep stretching their lead.
“It’s the little things every night that really put us in a hole,” Walton said. “Twenty-five points off our turnovers. We’re making a run and they can’t make a shot, we have momentum and nobody guards Jared Dudley, who’s their best three-point shooter, and he just walks into a three-point shot.”
Still, the Lakers fought back and kept the game close late. Forward Julius Randle took a rebound, started a fastbreak and delivered a thundering dunk through traffic to bring the Lakers to within five. On their next possession, Ingram made two free throws, bringing them to within three.
Forward Larry Nance Jr. talks to reporters about the Lakers’ 119-115 to the Phoenix Suns.
The Staples Center crowd stood to chant “de-fense,” but they didn’t get the stop they wanted. Randle fouled Bledsoe, deflating the building. Bledsoe made both free throws to again keep the Suns just a touch out of reach.
“I think it happens a lot with a young team where you’re kind of over-thinking the game and make mistakes,” veteran forward Luol Deng said.
“And then you realize you’ve already made enough mistakes so you just wanna play hard. That’s really what it is. Playing hard from the start would eliminate a lot of mistakes.”
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