ICYMI: LeBron James gives up on defense after Russell Westbrook botches an easy layup, Houston Rockets easily convert on the other end

LeBron James and the LA Lakers were stunned and humiliated by the Houston Rockets in overtime. The young Rockets, who own the second-worst record in the NBA, destroyed the Lakers in the extra period. James and Russell Westbrook, the team’s superstars, were helpless as the massacre unfolded.

From a tied 120-120 game heading into overtime, the Houston Rockets blasted the Lakers with a 10-0 run. It could have easily been a crippling 13-0 beatdown had Kevin Porter Jr.’s three-point shot, as the 24-shot clock expired, been counted.

Despite the unexpected barrage of points, the Lakers were still in it as there were still three minutes on the clock. The ensuing play practically broke the Hollywood squad’s will:

Ironically enough, Russell Westbrook, who botched the point-blank layup, played a solidly impressive game. He had a team-high 30 points and was 8-12 from the field before the miss. LeBron James looked deflated after that and jogged back on defense just in time to see Eric Gordon nail a backbreaking three-point dagger to increase the lead to 13 points.

LeBron James put up another spectacular stat line with 23 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists. He also had 5 turnovers and had a team-worst net rating of -17. It was one of those games where the box scores don’t tell a big part of the story.

Besides the lackadaisical effort to get back on defense, LeBron James will be remembered for passing up a potential game-winning shot in regulation. Despite his reputation as a clutch performer, “King James” has been letting game-winning opportunities pass by him this season.

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LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and the LA Lakers will be in for a fight to get into the playoffs

The LA Lakers will need to be at their collective best to enter the postseason. [NBA.com]

At the rate the Lakers are losing, they will be hard-pressed to get into the play-in tournament. Their expectations have to be significantly lowered as the crucial stretch of the season nears its peak. From expecting to go deep in the playoffs, they should work first in at least grabbing a play-in spot.

The Lakers’ schedule is one of the toughest remaining in the NBA. Of the 16 games left on their schedule, 11 will be played away from Crypto.Com Arena. Several of those road games will be against elite teams who are looking to get better as the postseason arrives.

They will have matches against the Phoenix Suns, Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets on the road.

If they are getting embarrassed by teams with losing records, playing against the above-mentioned teams will not be easy, to say the least.