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Anthony Davis and the LA Lakers' woes continued as they endured their sixth defeat of the ongoing NBA season on Friday night, losing to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The 17-time NBA champions suffered yet another second-half meltdown as they were outscored 34-63. The Lakers lost the tie by a 107-83 margin and even trailed by a whopping 33 points at one stage.
Davis, the Lakers' co-captain, was visibly frustrated during the post-game press conference. He went on to claim that the Purple and Gold do not look like a championship-caliber team at this stage. Here's what he said (h/t Dave McMenamin):
“We got to decide who we want to be. A championship team? That’s not us right now … That’s embarrassing … No effort in the third quarter.”
The LA Lakers put on a strong showing early on and grabbed a 11-point lead. It looked like they were on their way to an easy win against a Timberwolves side that had lost six straight games on the trot. But yet another lackluster showing in the third quarter, during which the Lakers were outscored 12-40, completely shifted the tie in favor of their opponents.
Anthony Davis recorded 22 points, eight rebounds and three blocks on the night, while Russell Westbrook had 20 points and five rebounds. Meanwhile, the likes of Carmelo Anthony (3 points, 1 of 8 shooting from the 3-point line) and Malik Monk (7 points, 1 of 7 shooting from the 3-point line) sustained poor outings in this contest.
LA Lakers register unwanted records in blowout loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves
The LA Lakers' loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves was one of the worst in recent history. It saw them record a plethora of unwanted records on the night.
The Lakers were outscored by 28 points in the third quarter alone, their second-worst points differential in franchise history for any quarter since the shot-clock era began (1954-55). Moreover, the starters combined for just six assists on the night, the lowest tally for this statistic in their last four seasons (via ESPN Stats & Info).
As per SB Nation's Christian Rivas, LA Lakers have just two players with a positive +/- in the third quarter; Austin Reaves (+1.9) and Wayne Ellington (+0.3). Meanwhile, the Purple and Gold are yet to win a game in regulation time without their leader LeBron James. He has played six of the team's 13 games so far.
James is currently out dealing with an abdominal strain. There is no update on his return, but as per coach Frank Vogel, his star player is recovering well. In his absence, Anthony Davis will have to make sure the team stays afloat and puts in winning performances each game. So far, that hasn't been the case and Davis will be keen to change that.
The LA Lakers will face the San Antonio Spurs next, followed by the Chicago Bulls in a back-to-back set.
Guess the Lakers players!
