What a fall from grace. Just a few months ago, the Los Angeles Lakers were on top of the basketball world. After winning the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament, many hoped that the team would regain the form they had during the 2020 season. Almost immediately after the championship, though, Los Angeles started a seemingly unstoppable downward spiral.
The latest blemish on the Lakers’ record this season is a brutal collapse against the Brooklyn Nets. LA led by six points after the first half. Fans were gearing up for a slugfest between two teams hungry to prove themselves. However, that’s not what happened: Brooklyn proceeded to completely demolish the Lakers in the second half. They ended up losing by 18 points.
After the game, star forward LeBron James was asked by Dave McMenamin how he plans to move on from the Lakers’ crushing loss. His response?
How does the NBA star clear his mind from his team’s struggles? Watching the NFL. pic.twitter.com/FY5zrf2TGC
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 20, 2024
That’s certainly one way to forget your troubles. LeBron James’ hometown team in the Cleveland Browns have been eliminated, but there’s still a fun slate of games with a lot of storylines to watch. The Lakers star will get to tune in to the game between the Ravens and the Texans before a classic rivalry game between the Packers and 49ers.
As for the Lakers… well, they’ll need to get everything fixed pretty quickly. Their solid start gave them a solid cushion, but that has quickly dwindled as the losses piled up. They’re now 21-22, good for 10th in the Western Conference. The talent is there: wins against some of the best teams in the league show that. All they need is to find the consistency to get going every game.