Lakers News: Luke Walton, Lonzo Ball Speak on Team's Collapse vs. Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton and point guard Lonzo Ball commented Friday night on the team's struggles in a 118-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Lakers led by as many as 10 in the third quarter, but they allowed the Clippers to go on a 22-0 run that shattered their hopes of winning the rivalry game.
Walton expressed his belief that the Lakers didn't play as a team down the stretch, according to ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin: "I felt like we kind of started to splinter a little bit while it was happening. That can't happen. We can lose games, but we'll lose them together. When we win them, we'll win them together. No matter what's happening on the court, we have to stay together and keep working and figure it out."
The Lakers were without three key veterans Friday, as LeBron James, Rajon Rondo and JaVale McGee all sat with injuries.
Even with those players on the shelf, Ball stressed the importance of sticking together in times of adversity: "I mean, guys were getting frustrated. Anytime a team goes on a 22-0 run, it's not going to be all fine and dandy. We got to regroup. We can't argue with each other. We're on the same team."
Ball had a strong individual game with 19 points, six assists and five rebounds, but it wasn't enough to beat a Clippers team that Lou Williams paced with a game-high 36 points off the bench.
Since upsetting the Golden State Warriors on Christmas, the Lakers have lost consecutive games and dropped to 20-16 on the season.
L.A. is now seventh in the Western Conference and in danger of potentially falling out of a playoff spot while James nurses a groin injury.
The Lakers' next opportunity to turn things around will come Sunday when they host a Sacramento Kings team that beat them 117-116 on Thursday.
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