The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a difficult 132-119 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, and the last thing LeBron James wants to think about in December is his team’s chances of making the playoffs.
Reporters spoke with King James in the locker room after the NBA Cup defeat, in which the Lakers fell into big holes and couldn’t climb out. LeBron finished with 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, along with 15 rebounds and eight assists. Luka Doncic had a team-high 35 points, but it wasn’t enough to sustain a Spurs team that received 30 points from NBA Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle.
The loss dropped Los Angeles out of the NBA Cup as San Antonio advances to play the Oklahoma City Thunder. Making things more challenging for the Lakers is that the Spurs did it without their superstar, Victor Wembanyama.
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“This is a unique team. They got five, six guys that can break you down off the dribble, super fast, super quick. Some of them are stronger, faster, better ball handlers,” LeBron said postgame of the Spurs without Wemby.
That seems to suggest this Spurs team will be a dangerous force come playoff time, but LeBron James wasn’t ready to speak on his team’s level of preparedness for the postseason yet.
“This is December, what? Are you talking about the playoffs? I can’t do that,” LeBron said.
“The habits that we build throughout the regular season, each month, if we are in a position to make it to the postseason and be able to get to that point we have to build it now,” he said, adding, “But talking about what type of damage we can do in the postseason in December, that’s not right for the basketball gods.”
As LeBron mentioned, the playoffs are still months away, giving the Lakers time to work on issues. The team is still in second place in the Western Conference with a 17-6 record; however, the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, and Spurs are right there with them.
All of the above teams look to be challenges for this Lakers team, unless they get things figured out fast. The team will need to find ways to improve their defense, so they can hang with some of the best the West has to offer.
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