Lakers’ defense falters in 123-114 loss to the Grizzlies
The Lakers had found the recipe: defend and play fast. That had to be the balance, the two key ingredients that had led to a four-game winning streak.
Fail to do either one and it’d be tough for this Lakers team to win. Subtract Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram because of injuries and it would become impossible.
To overcome it, the Lakers would need grit. They’d need to grind. They’d have to fight.
And … they didn’t.
Facing one of the worst offenses in the NBA, the Lakers defense was no obstacle, the Memphis Grizzlies waltzing to the basket time and again Monday in a 123-114 win at the FedEx Forum and ending the Lakers’ longest winning streak of the season.
“There were lots of problems tonight,” Lakers coach Luke Walton said. “But the biggest was we weren’t physically, mentally ready to match what Memphis brought tonight. That’s disappointing. That has nothing to do with anything but the toughness to be engaged in a fight.
“We’ve been good at that, and tonight for whatever reason we let them kind of punk us all over the floor.”
It wasn’t a full 48-minute punking at least.
The Lakers had their moments in the first half and got off to a strong start in the third quarter, but the effort wasn’t sustained for nearly long enough.
After fighting back to trail by only two points in the third quarter, the Lakers saw Memphis put together a 30-12 run over seven minutes to end the quarter — the game’s defining stretch.
The Grizzlies, it should be noted, are among the least efficient offensive teams in the NBA, ranking near the bottom in points scored per 100 possessions.
Those numbers, thanks to the Lakers, improved a bit Monday.
“That’s definitely on us,” center Brook Lopez said.
The Grizzlies made more than half of their shots overall, made 45.5% of their three-point attempts and shot 34 free throws.
“Our energy wasn’t there tonight from the start,” Lopez said. “We put ourselves at a disadvantage early on. …We were kind of in it, kind of in the right place. It was just tough to play from behind. It’s tough to play from that hole.”
Eight Grizzlies scored at least 10 points, led by rookie Dillon Brooks with 19.
The Lakers offense was proficient, but without its top two playmakers it looked clunky and unorganized. The absences forced Walton, who wasn’t a sure thing thanks to his own illness, to use his 15th starting lineup.
The Lakers made less than 40% of their shots, Jordan Clarkson missing 11 of 13.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led the Lakers with 27 points. Kyle Kuzma had 18 points and seven rebounds and rookie Josh Hart scored 16 points in the eighth start of his career.
“We just had to give a little extra effort,” Hart said.
Primarily, the Lakers’ problems were on the defensive end. The Grizzlies, who usually move through defenses like molasses, glided around the court without obstruction.
The Lakers hadn’d allowed that to happen against their previous four opponents.
“They moved the ball freely wherever they wanted,” Walton said. “Give them credit. They made their shots. They were hitting. We let them move the ball where they wanted. We fouled them. …They just didn’t feel us. That’s not how we’ve been playing defense over this stretch. It’s unfortunate.”
The Lakers wrap up a three-game trip Wednesday night at Oklahoma City.
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