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The Smoothie King Center went into a frenzy as the LA Lakers suffered a defeat at the hands of the home team, the New Orleans Pelicans. The Lakers lost 116-108 after leading by 23 points Sunday night.
The Lakers entered the game in ninth place in the Western Conference, while the Pelicans were 10th. However, the teams swapped positions with the loss as the Lakers' chances of getting into the play-in tournament dwindled.
Kendrick Perkins said the Lakers would be "the biggest disappointments in NBA history" if they fail to make the playoffs this season. He was distraught at the Lakers' slipup in a game they controlled.
"Forget the titles, forget the title runs, being a title contender, forget making noise in the playoffs." Perkins said. "If the Lakers miss the playoffs, which they have a strong possibility of doing, they could be the biggest disappointments in NBA history, period."
The LA Lakers suffered a heart-wrenching defeat to the New Orleans Pelicans
The LA Lakers and the New Orleans Pelicans played a crucial game in the race for play-in spots on Sunday night.
The Lakers (31-43) lost 116-108 despite leading 69-49 at halftime. They were outscored 41-25 in the third, as the Pelicans were inspired by Trey Murphy III. The Pels (32-43) then outscored Los Angeles 26-14 in the final quarter.
The win gave the Pelicans the tiebreaker over the Lakers. New Orleans won the first two meetings. They will meet for the third and final time on Friday in Los Angeles.
The Lakers have gone 4-12 since the All-Star break and 10-24 since Jan. 9.
With eight games remaining, the Lakers are under a lot of pressure to secure a play-in spot to try to gain entry into the playoffs. They are clinging to the final play-in berth, holiding a one-game lead over the San Antonio Spurs (30-44).
The Lakers' next outing is a must-win game against the Dallas Mavericks (46-29), who are fourth in the West, with the Spurs lurking.
In their final eight games, the Lakers have five road games and five games against teams with at least 44 wins.
