Lakers Take a Step Down

The break in the season came 48 minutes too late for the Lakers, who wrestled with the Atlanta Hawks as if they were the Eastern Conference All-Stars when, in truth, none of them will be playing in Sunday’s game.

The Lakers, usually kind enough to step down to the level of their competition, lost to one of the league’s worst teams, 114-110, eschewing their typical late-game meltdowns for a much slower burn, a second-half disbanding in front of a very late-arriving crowd that also didn’t appear to expect much from the Hawks on Wednesday at Staples Center.

Two days after a 26-point lead almost escaped them against Utah, the Lakers frittered away a 15-point first-quarter advantage as the Hawks improved to 16-34 overall, 5-20 on the road and 5-17 against West teams.

Laker Coach Phil Jackson envisioned quite a few ways of going into the All-Star break. This wasn’t one of them.

“Wow, how can you lose a ballgame like that?” Jackson said. “I just don’t understand sometimes the capabilities of this team to disappoint.”

Hawk guard Joe Johnson looked like John Stockton at his best, carving up the Lakers with assist after assist, a career-high 15 in all to go with 20 points.

The Lakers, owners of a 26-26 record that left them lagging behind last season’s 28-24 pace, were woeful in too many ways to count.

They made six of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter. They played patty-cake defense, letting the Hawks penetrate at will. Laker guards Smush Parker and Sasha Vujacic combined to make two of 16 shots.

Kobe Bryant scored his points -- 39 on 14-of-28 shooting -- but missed six of 12 free throws, surprisingly poor for a career 83.3% shooter from the line but just part of the trimmings on a night when the Lakers made 15 of 27 free throws.

“I don’t think we have an excuse,” Jackson said, as befuddled as anybody.

Lamar Odom had 17 points, but only three rebounds and three assists in 34 minutes.

Yet somehow, the Lakers climbed to within 105-104 on Odom’s three-pointer with 2:06 left, but then Johnson hit rookie Marvin Williams underneath for a layup and a free throw to complete a three-point play.

The Lakers could have tied the score at 109-109 when Bryant stole the ball in the backcourt, but Parker missed a dunk and Bryant had the rebound stolen from him by Josh Childress. At the other end, Johnson scored off a rebound after Royal Ivey missed a baseline jumper. The Hawks led, 111-107, and ended a 23-game road losing streak against the Western Conference.

“We came through without an injury,” Jackson said. “That’s about the only thing that could have been a bigger negative than a loss like that.”

The Lakers took a 27-12 lead on Odom’s reverse layup with 4:26 left in the first quarter, an advantage that slimmed significantly by halftime because of kind-hearted defense that allowed Johnson to compile 10 first-half assists.

But it looked like karma was on the side of the Lakers after Bryant double-clutched a three-pointer from 30 feet out as the shot clock expired for a 73-71 lead in the third quarter.

And for once, the crowd chanted a name other than Bryant’s, rookie Ronny Turiaf receiving short-lived recognition after getting hauled down under the basket by Zaza Pachulia with 1.4 seconds left in the third quarter. Pachulia was called for a flagrant foul and Turiaf made both free throws, his first points as a Laker providing an 84-83 Laker lead.

The euphoria didn’t last long. Atlanta wouldn’t let it.

“I’m befuddled. Perplexed. Mystified,” Bryant said. “Just put the first half of the season behind us. We wish we could have played a lot better this first half of the season. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen.”

And with that, the Lakers tumbled into the All-Star break, with four days to think about things before they reconvene Monday for practice.