LeBron James Drops 27 as Lakers Cruise to Win over Kemba Walker, Hornets
LeBron James posted 27 points on 11-of-19 shooting and nine assists as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Charlotte Hornets 129-115 on Friday at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including six three-pointers. Rajon Rondo added 17 assists and five steals, Lance Stephenson contributed a 14-point, 13-rebound double-double and Kyle Kuzma scored 20.
Kemba Walker pitched in a team-leading 24 points for the 35-40 Hornets, who fell two games behind the eighth-place Miami Heat for the Eastern Conference's final postseason spot. The ninth-place Orlando Magic sit between the two teams at 37-39.
The Lakers improved to 34-42.
Hornets' Season All But Over After Lakers Loss
The Hornets emerged as one of the NBA's best stories over the past few weeks thanks to a four-game win streak buoyed by an unbelievable Jeremy Lamb half-court buzzer-beater in an upset win over the Toronto Raptors:
Charlotte beat three teams (the Raptors, Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs) headed to the playoffs during that stretch, and it seemed as though the Hornets could ride that magic and momentum into a postseason berth. At 35-39, the Hornets were just 1.5 games behind the Miami Heat for the eighth and final playoff spot entering Friday.
However, any good will generated over the last two weeks has been completely washed away after a lifeless 14-point loss to the short-handed Lakers, who are playing out the string of a lost season.
Charlotte entered the game as 2.5-point favorites, per the FanDuel sportsbook. That doesn't mean the Hornets were largely expected to win, but they came into the game with something to play for later in the spring, while the Lakers did not.
The on-court results didn't show it, however, as L.A. jumped out to a 10-point halftime edge and led by as many as 20 in the third quarter. The Hornets could not cut the deficit to fewer than eight points for the remainder of the game.
Charlotte isn't out of the playoff race with the Heat just 2.5 games ahead, but this loss all but seals its fate.
Not only is this a deflating defeat to a losing team, but the Hornets' task of jumping Miami and Orlando just got much harder.
Down the stretch, the Hornets might be favored in three games: at the 32-45 New Orleans Pelicans, home versus Orlando and at the 19-57 Cavaliers.
The rest of the slate is brutal. A matchup at the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors looms large Sunday, and that precedes a visit to the 46-30 Utah Jazz on Monday. Furthermore, the Jazz will have two full days of rest heading into that game, while the tired Hornets will be traveling from the Bay Area to Utah after playing the night before.
An April 5 home contest with the 53-23 Raptors lies ahead, as does a road date with the 38-37 Pistons. The Hornets may have beaten the Raptors, but Toronto is still a far better team. And Detroit may be in Charlotte's record neighborhood, but the Pistons are a strong 24-13 at home. Meanwhile, the Hornets are just 11-25 away from Charlotte.
Granted, the Hornets have proved capable of beating postseason teams in recent memory, but chances are against Charlotte finishing the regular season on a hot streak. Meanwhile, the Heat and Magic each have a game against the last-place New York Knicks next, who have lost five straight to fall to 14-61. That's as close to an automatic win as one gets in the league these days, making it more difficult for Charlotte to bounce back.
In sum, the Hornets have been a great end-of-season story in their playoff quest, and it could have been a blast to watch Walker in a postseason setting a la his magic championship run with UConn in 2011. However, it's probably not to be this year.
What's Next?
Both teams will be on the road Sunday.
The Hornets will play the second matchup of a four-game Western Conference road swing against the Warriors.
The Lakers will visit the Pelicans.
