Lakers' Darvin Ham Unsure How to Stop Damian Lillard 'Short of Stealing His Sneakers'

The good news for Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham is the fact his team doesn't have to face Damian Lillard again this season barring a postseason matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers.

The bad news is he had no idea how to stop the seven-time All-Star during Monday's 127-115 loss.

Ham told reporters he couldn't think of anything "short of stealing his sneakers" when it came to slowing Lillard, who finished with 40 points, six rebounds and five assists behind a blistering 8-of-14 shooting from three-point range.

Lillard mixed in his patented shots from well beyond the arc, including a buzzer-beater to end the first quarter in style:

The Lakers were without LeBron James and never had much of a realistic chance following a slow start. They made the final score look more respectable than it felt by outsourcing Portland by 10 points in the fourth quarter when the game was already well in hand.

Los Angeles is running out of time to make a move up the standings at 26-32. It has 24 games remaining and sits 2.5 games behind the Utah Jazz for the final spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament. The Blazers are 11th in the West with a 28-29 record.