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Lakers: Highs and Lows from blowout loss against Clippers

By Jonathan Fernandez

Mar 21, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; LA Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) shoots against Los Angeles Lakers forward Julius Randle (30) in the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; LA Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) shoots against Los Angeles Lakers forward Julius Randle (30) in the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /
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There were plenty of lows in the Lakers 133-109 blowout loss Tuesday night against the Clippers, but there were also some highs.

Mar 21, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram (14) controls the ball against LA Clippers forward Luc Mbah a Moute (12) in the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram (14) controls the ball against LA Clippers forward Luc Mbah a Moute (12) in the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /

The Highs

Zubac’s and Robinson’s production: Ivica Zubac led the way for the Lakers early and finished with 17 points and seven rebounds. It seemed like he was the only one looking to be aggressive and he clearly wasn’t afraid to take on DJ or Blake Griffin. Thomas Robinson came out aggressive in the second half, going seven of eight from the field in ten minutes. Robinson finished with 16 points, a season high for him.

Ingram’s drives to the hoop: Magic Johnson said that he’d talked to Ingram about taking the contact while driving and it seems to have worked. Ingram has made it a focus to drive to the rim more often, and he continued to do so against the Clippers. Ingram used his body and momentum to make space for himself and finish. Ingram finished with a team-high 21 points.

Tanking season: Despite losing in embarrassing fashion, every loss is a win for the tank. The Lakers got another step closer to keeping their top three draft pick and adding another promising player.

Mar 21, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton talks to guard Jordan Clarkson (6) and guard D’Angelo Russell (1) in the first half against the LA Clippers at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton talks to guard Jordan Clarkson (6) and guard D’Angelo Russell (1) in the first half against the LA Clippers at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /

The Lows

Russell’s aggressiveness in the first half: You’d expect someone who just dropped 40 to come out gunning. That’s not what happened early against the Clippers. D’Angelo seemed content to take a backseat instead of shoot in the first half which. He was efficient in the first half so the team could’ve used a higher volume of shots from D’lo.

The defense: Early in the game you could kind of tell things were going to get bad. D’Angelo would get lost on seemingly every screen leaving Reddick wide open. That would force Clarkson to make a weak close-out as Reddick drained the shot. The Clippers guards especially torched them in this one. Four of the five guards who played in the game were able to get into double-figures. Not to mention the team allowed the Clippers to get to 70 points after only 24 minutes. If you’re a professional basketball player you should be able to play some defense, right?

The lack of competitiveness: We know this Laker team can compete with anyone as we just saw them go toe to toe with the champs. The thing we don’t know is why they don’t do it every night. This game was one of those that left us scratching our heads. The Lakers just didn’t have that fight tonight and it showed.

Next: Is Brandon Ingram the Lakers' next superstar?

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