[Epoch Times, February 28, 2022](Epoch Times reporter Xu Jiangsheng comprehensive report) On February 25, the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Clippers 102:105 at home again, and they have lost three times this season. The first time the Clippers played on December 4 last year, the Lakers lost 115:119. Two months later, on February 4, the Clippers narrowly won 111:110. In the past 38 games against the Lakers, the Clippers have won 31 games, and the Clippers’ winning rate is as high as 81.6%. The Lakers have lost 6 straight games against the Clippers. In the past 10 “Los Angeles Derby” games, the Lakers have lost 9 times. Since Tyronn Lue coached the Clippers, the Lakers have faced the Clippers 0. Win 6 losses.
In this game, the Clippers’ star Kawhi Leonard and Paul George did not play due to injuries. Davis missed the game on the Lakers side, which was equivalent to the Clippers letting a “rook” in the chess game, but the Lakers Still losing, which also makes many people doubt the true strength of the Lakers.
What’s even more pessimistic is that the Lakers’ most recent first-round pick is in 2027, which means that the Lakers have overdrawn their future, and Lakers owner Jeanie Buss is not willing to spend money. The Lakers’ luxury tax this season is only 3,000. 10,000, while the Clippers are nearly 100 million. Even if Westbrook’s contract expires in 2023 and the Lakers have salary space, it will be difficult for a star to join James in Los Angeles, so the Lakers may continue to be bleak in the next few years.
Clippers beat Lakers three times in season
In the first quarter, the two sides competed fiercely, and the score was very tight. The biggest difference was no more than 4 points. In the last 3 minutes, the two sides only scored 2 points. In this wave of showdowns, the Clippers had the upper hand and took a 2-point lead. At the beginning of the second quarter, the Clippers successfully opened the score with a wave of 10:2 offensive. In the middle of this section, the Clippers sent another 13:2 offensive to gain a 16-point advantage. At the end of the quarter, Lebron James and “Melon” Anthony (Carmelo Anthony) came out one after another and contributed 12 points to stop the decline. At the end of the half, the Clippers led the Lakers 57:47.
After changing sides, the Lakers recovered. On the offensive end, they relied on the style of all the soldiers to fight back continuously. At the beginning, they caught up with the score with a wave of 11:2 offensive. And the three-point goal, the Lakers sent another wave of 20:7 offensive to achieve the lead, and at the end of the three quarters, the Lakers led the Clippers 78:72.
In the fourth quarter, the competition between the two sides became fierce. The Clippers once regained the initiative with three consecutive points, but the Lakers also stepped up their offense. In the final 2 minutes of the decisive battle, Terance Mann made a layup, Amir Coffey made 2 of 2 free throws, and the Clippers led by 1 point. At the last moment, Marcus Morris Sr. scored a key goal to take the lead, while Anthony and James missed two consecutive three-pointers on the Lakers side and failed to perform a miracle. In the end, the Clippers won the “Derby” for the third time this season with 105:102.
The performance of the leading star stretches across
In this game, James did not play very well. He had a sporadic offensive performance throughout the game, and he did not come forward at the critical moment. Although James’ data performance this season is quite stable, but in the opening stage of this game, although he came up and hit a jumper in a low post single, but he missed the next two offenses, and his personal shots were not many, three shots and one. After the middle, James was quickly substituted and did not reappear until the last two minutes of the first quarter, but there was no particularly good performance.
In the second quarter, James’ performance was still not good at the beginning. He didn’t score three-pointers and post-up singles. When the Lakers did not score a goal in sports for five minutes across the quarter, James finally hit a three-pointer from the bottom corner, but he quickly passed the ball again. Mistakes and catching the ball quickly in the counterattack were also mistakes. James’ poor performance during this period also greatly reduced the overall efficiency of the Lakers.
In the fourth quarter of the decision, in the bite between the two teams, James showed little performance. He only made one kill and two free throws, and once assisted Anthony Biao and scored a three-pointer. In the last three minutes of the game, he failed to score a three-pointer and a strong layup, and missed the opportunity to expand the lead. In the last 24.5 seconds, the Lakers got the chance to make a lore, but James was double-teamed to make the lore. The opportunity was passed to Anthony, who missed a three-pointer. When he was behind by a three-pointer in the last 0.7 seconds, James didn’t make a hasty three-pointer, and the Lakers lost. His performance of “throwing the pot” has also been criticized by many fans.
Another “giant” Westbrook (Russel Westbrook) also pulled across. This game is a vivid portrayal of his state. At the beginning of the first quarter, he hit the iron while chasing after the ball. Although he hit the rebound while catching the ball, he didn’t make any three-pointers or layups after that. After James came off, Westbrook’s personal offensive desire was stronger, but the effect was still not good. Although he made an emergency stop and made a strong layup, he missed all two free throws and missed three points. A sudden layup against Zubac still failed.
After Westbrook came on the court in the second quarter, he still did not perform very well. Whether it was a personal attack or a continuous pass to Howard, he failed to score. He also seemed very passive in the defense of the counterattack. He is very hip on both ends of the floor.
In the third quarter, Westbrook led the Lakers’ offense to gradually pick up after 3 points. After that, he didn’t have any good performances. In the final quarter, in the stubborn bite between the two teams, Westbrook only stumbled into the basket once in a mid-range shot, and most of the time was mediocre. In the last 30 seconds of the game, Morris made a head-to-head mid-range shot, and the Clippers overtook the score. Then he failed to make a mid-range shot against defense. Westbrook struggled throughout the game, and there was no chance of performance in the final decisive moment.
Responsible editor: Li Rongshi