5. Josh Hart struggles
Coming into the season, the young core was talked about a lot. However, the one person that felt left out from discussions was Josh Hart. Hart has stated previously that he felt undervalued compared to his fellow young core members.
Throughout the season, Hart was proving those people wrong. He seemed to be the best of the bunch, providing consistent production and fitting into his role perfectly. However, given a chance to step into the starting lineup during the trip, he struggled mightily.
Hart started off hot, shooting 6-of-8 against the Rockets for 15 points. He would score 15 points in the next three games combined, shooting an unsightly 6-of-28. His 3-point percentage plummetted during the trip, as he made only 2-of-14 from distance in the final three games of the road trip.
We’re also used to seeing Hart stuff the stat sheet even if he doesn’t score. That didn’t happen too often either. Against the Wizards, Hart failed to record any stat other than one block. He pulled down only 10 rebounds in four games with three assists, two steals and three blocks.
This was a tough stretch of games for Hart. He should return to his bench role as the Lakers should be getting some players back from injury this week, so hopefully, he can return to his normal level of production.