Lonzo Ball Says He's to Blame for Lakers Loss to Jazz After '2 Dumb Plays'

Los Angeles Lakers rookie point guard Lonzo Ball took the blame for the team's 96-81 loss to the Utah Jazz on Saturday night.

"Put this loss on me," Ball said, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com. "We were coming back. Two dumb plays by me, and they got up.

"Definitely can improve a lot. I think I had nine points and four assists. It's not enough when I am going like that."

The sequence Ball referred to came late in the third quarter, with the Lakers trailing by six points after they fought back from a 31-16 deficit in the first quarter. Ball was in position to rebound an Alec Burks' three-point attempt but neither he nor his teammates boxed out rookie Donovan Mitchell, who soared for a one-handed putback slam.

Ball turned the ball over on the next possession, leading to a Mitchell three.

"That was my fault," Ball noted. "If you think about it, that kind of changed the whole course of the game. ... I should have boxed him out. Then I threw the turnover."

Despite being outplayed by Mitchell on Saturday night—the Jazz guard had a career-high 22 points—Ball has shown promise in his rookie campaign, averaging 10.0 points, 7.7 assists, 7.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game. While there are clearly areas for improvement—he's shooting just 28.1 percent from beyond the arc and 31.1 percent overall, for instance—Ball has flashed upside.

Not surprisingly, there's been plenty of excitement surrounding the young Lakers, though Ball had a few words for fans who've jumped off the bandwagon during the team's 2-4 start:

But Ball believes the team will improve.

"We are still trying to find our identity still," he said, per the Associated Press. "We are trying to run, and some of the possessions are getting caught in the half court, and we are just standing. So it comes with practice. We have to figure it out in practice and transition to the game."