102-105！ The Lakers regretted losing to the Clippers at home and missing out on a two-game winning streak, while the Nuggets, who were sixth, were already 6.5 wins behind, and it was getting harder and harder to get a direct playoff spot.
The much-watched Los Angeles derby was extremely intense, the Lakers had a chance to win the game, but they failed to seize the opportunity in the last moment, and the Lakers lost, in addition to the final Anthony and James's 3-point kill failed to hit, Vogel's paranoia in the use of people may be the culprit.
In the first half, the Clippers, who lacked stars, once again showed resilience, once leading the Lakers by 16 points, leading by 10 points at 57-47 after halftime, and the Lakers defensive end of the third quarter played a wave of 31-15 offensive in the single quarter, directly surpassing 6 points into the fourth quarter.
In the final quarter, the two sides played very anxiously, and with 39 seconds left, the Lakers still led by 1 point at 102-101, but Morris Jr. faced Westbrook's blindfold defense and completed a difficult back-up shot to help the Clippers win 103-102, and the Lakers were pushed to the edge of the cliff. Immediately after, there were also continuous dramatic scenes on the court, the last 30 seconds of time, playing 20 minutes, the two sides won the ball through the coach challenge continuously, and the Lakers failed to seize the last moment, missing the opportunity to win the game.
In fact, the Lakers are not without a chance to win, but Vogel's use of people in the fourth quarter is quite puzzling, especially the abandonment of Howard, which has become one of the important factors that caused the Lakers to ultimately miss the 16-point reversal.
In this game, Howard rarely made a start, and before the thick eyebrow injury, Howard was abandoned by Vogel for most of the time, and played a pitifully small amount of time.
After returning to the start, Howard, a veteran, was very competitive and played the best performance of the season, playing 26 minutes and 14 seconds, 5 of 11, 4 of 5 free throws, cutting 14 points, 16 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 3 blocks, attacking and defending well.
It can be said that Howard has brought great help to the team in the protective frame and interior defense, filling the lack of the inner defensive end after the thick brow truce, while the offensive end contributed 14 points and the performance of 4 of 5 free throws did not drag the team's hind legs. But even with howard playing such a stunning performance, Vogel didn't want to give him more time in the fourth quarter, but simply left him aside.
The Lakers went into the fourth quarter with a six-point advantage, but were quickly chased by the Clippers to 84-85, Vogel put back on the main force after a timeout, and Howard also came on. In the next two minutes, the Lakers stabilized the situation, stretched the score to 95-90, and the Clippers had to call a timeout to adjust, but after the timeout returned, Vogel replaced Howard and sent a five-team lineup to fight the Clippers.
It was this substitution of Howard that completely lost the Lakers' inner line guard and defense, and the Clippers stubbornly chased points and achieved a counterattack in the final moment.
Howard, who cut 14 points, 16 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 3 blocks in the first three quarters, only played 2 minutes in the fourth quarter, which made people wonder why Vogel did not let Howard play more at this time, even if his offense could not remain efficient, but at least his defensive deterrent on the inside was still there, which could bring some trouble to the Clippers' interior offense.
It can be said that the Lakers have many problems this season, and the head coach is definitely one of the key people who need to stand up and take responsibility, just like the abandonment of Howard in this game reflects some of his problems in employment.