Lakers: 3 Things We Learned After LA Sloppily Beat the Pelicans

Jan 12, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr. (7), New Orleans Pelicans guard Norris Cole (30), and center Omer Asik (3) battle the ball during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 12, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr. (7), New Orleans Pelicans guard Norris Cole (30), and center Omer Asik (3) battle the ball during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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The Lakers’ Resiliency Is No Fad

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In three of their past five games, the Lakers have been down by double digits in the fourth quarter but managed to come back. Tuesday night was the first time they were actually able to come away with a win, losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Sacramento Kings after impressive come back efforts, and could be a sign of things to come.

This entire season, it has been a rare occurrence for the Lakers to come out hot, and put away an opponent early. Instead, it has actually been just the opposite, with teams beating the Lakers down in the first half by double-digits and sitting their starters in the fourth.

However, the Lakers are attempting to, and succeeding, at bucking the trend. Before, the young Lakers would get down on themselves and give up early, but that is far from the case in recent contests. Now, when trailing by double-digits in the fourth quarter, the Lakers are seemingly energized by the adversity and turn up the intensity.

Sadly, Tuesday night, D’Angelo Russell was not on the court to finish the game, replaced by Lou Williams who was actually instrumental in the comeback win with key buckets down the stretch. The team is definitely more confident than they were a month ago which is a good sign for fans everywhere.

Next: Lakers First Line of Defense Needs to Improve