Los Angeles Lakers fans saw the Memphis Grizzlies on the schedule on Friday, and they thought their team would certainly get a much-needed win. Memphis had lost four of its last five games and came in ranked last in scoring and offensive rating.
Early on, it looked like the Lakers were on the way to getting back on track. They led 38-29 at the end of the first quarter and led by as many as 13 points early in the second quarter behind some hot shooting and relatively effective defense. But they gradually cooled off offensively, allowing Memphis to come to within one at halftime and take a five-point lead early in the third quarter.
The game was tied at 94 entering the final period, and it was very much up for grabs. But L.A. fell completely apart down the stretch. Its offense screeched to a halt and had no movement or purpose, and its defense was even worse, as it got outscored 33-19 in the final frame. It ended up losing 127-113 to a team that was 11-23 entering Friday.
It seems like the Lakers keep hitting new lows every few games these days. The Grizzlies are one of the NBA’s worst 3-point shooting teams, yet they shot 51.1% from that distance in this game. Down the stretch, it seemed as if they couldn’t miss, as they went 7-of-11 from downtown in the fourth period. Guard Marcus Smart, who came in shooting just 26.3% from downtown and had missed all of his 13 3-ball attempts in his last three games, was 8-of-14 from deep on Friday.
While L.A. shot a decent 35.7% from downtown, it got outscored by a whopping 39 points from the 3-point line. It didn’t matter that it outscored the Grizzlies by 16 in the paint, had seven more free throw attempts, three more made free throws, five more steals and had a 20-15 edge in fast-break points while limiting them to eight second-chance points.
The Lakers have now lost 10 of their last 13 games and hold a 17-19 record. This skid seems to be taking a life of its own, and one has to assume it is living rent-free in their heads right now.