The Los Angeles Lakers suffered another bad loss on Saturday night. After the game, LeBron James talked about losing.
Coming into Saturday night, the Los Angeles Lakers looked like they had a great opportunity to start a winning streak. After a big win against the Houston Rockets earlier in the week, momentum looked to be building for Los Angeles.
However, despite Anthony Davis sitting out, the Lakers fell to the Pelicans in embarrassing fashion. Los Angeles allowed 128 points to a team without their best player, and this is once again another bad loss to a team that the Lakers should have beat.
After the game, LeBron James talked a little about the culture of the Lakers. Here’s what he had to say on Spectrum SportsNet with text via Christian Rivas of SilverScreenAndRoll.com.
"“The last few years, everyone’s so accustomed to the losses that I’m just not accustomed to. I’m not accustomed to it, I’d never get comfortable with losing. Losing game one to Houston, it feels the same way as losing game 59 in New Orleans, for me. That’s just how I’m built. That’s who I am.”"
Losing has certainly been something that the Lakers have become accustomed too. Despite adding some veterans with a winning pedigree this offseason, the core of the Lakers is still very young. Guys like Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma haven’t won much in the NBA, and that is something that the team needs to work on.
As one of the best players in the NBA, James is going to have to lead this young team. Possibly more than he ever has in his career. There have been far too many bad losses for the Lakers this season, and if they want to make the playoffs, they have to stop.
The comments by James are certainly a message to his team that the losing has to stop. With just 23 games left in the regular season, the Lakers are by no means out of the playoff hunt. However, losses to teams like the Pelicans make reaching the playoffs a tougher task.
On Monday, the Lakers will have another very winnable game against the Memphis Grizzlies. Hopefully, the losses to bad teams stop, and the Lakers begin to get accustomed to winning rather than losing.