A fiasco reveals that the Lakers' core competitiveness is insufficient, and more changes are needed to compete for the championship

Tyrese Maxey denied Joel Embiid's pick-and-roll on the left wing, stopped after dribbling, flicked back, and passed the ball to Embiid in the open space.

With Anthony Davis taking a drop-back strategy and being ready to intercept Maxey's potential offense, he quickly stepped back to Embiid and half-putted and half-putted to defend his catch-and-shoot threes. The shot kicked off a 20-2 offensive run by the Philadelphia 76ers in the highly anticipated game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday. The situation in this game has changed radically.

From that moment on, the Philadelphia 76ers' lead in the game was close to 50 points at one point, and the Lakers ended up with a historic miserable loss at the Wells Fargo Center.

Austin Reaves bluntly told reporters after the game: "They beat us up. ”

In one of the biggest tests of the first 20 games of the season, the Lakers ended in defeat. The Lakers had won seven of their previous nine games, but the heavy loss wiped out their newfound pride.

The 44-point margin is tied for the fourth-largest in franchise history and the largest in 290 games for the Lakers against the 76ers. It was also the most points LeBron James has lost in a career game.

"It feels like we're not together," Davis said. ”

The 76ers have beaten the Lakers in seven straight games. The Los Angeles Lakers have an overall record of 10-8 and a 3-6 record on the road. The Lakers have dropped to eighth in the West.

James, who usually remains calm when losing, was visibly frustrated at the post-match press conference. His answers were brief, saying only a few words at a time. He hinted that the Lakers needed to make major changes, but he declined to give specifics.

"What needs to change in order not to happen again? a lot," James said. "

When asked if anything in particular had changed, James again refused to reveal too much: "No, a lot. "

Coach Darvin Ham, who had been reluctant to drop his starters in the fourth quarter, threw the white flag in surrender at 8:18 of the final quarter, and after the 76ers started with a 13-4 run to extend their lead to 27 points, he pulled off his starters. In short, although Embiid did not play in the final quarter, the 76ers defeated the Lakers 40-14 in the fourth quarter.

"Your competitive spirit has to be at a very high level, and in a way, it almost has to be invulnerable," Hamm said. You have to fight with force. They are clearly better than us. ”

Ham was particularly disappointed with rookies Jalen Hood Sifino and Maxwell Lewis, as well as two-way contract players Dedimoy Hodge and Alex Fudge in the late stages of the game as they were crushed in garbage time.

"In a fight, you can never stop punching," Hamm said. You have to let go of your hands. You have to keep throwing punches. "

In the NBA, unpleasant nights happen all the time. Losing big on the road to a strong opponent doesn't have to be unique. But it adds to the Lakers' unsettling tendency against a formidable opponent. In terms of record, the 76ers (12-5) are tied with the Orlando Magic for the best team the Lakers have ever faced. On the Lakers' books, the number of games lost to strong teams is increasing, and the number of games won by mediocre teams and bad teams is the majority. In 18 matches, they have a 5-8 record against teams with a win percentage of over 50% and a record of 5-0 against teams with a win percentage of under 50%.

Of course, the Lakers were understaffed against the 76ers, missing Jarred Vanderbilt (heel), Gabe Vincent (knee), Cam Reddish (groin) and Hachimura (broken nose) – which meant three of the team's four best perimeter defenders were unavailable. Not having as much size, athleticism, and defense can also have a cascading effect on the offensive end.

"We've had some unfortunate situations out of our control," Hamm said. But at the same time, once the game starts, whoever we put on the shirt, we have to step up, keep sweating and give it our all on both ends of the pitch. All in all, that's it. It's not rocket science. ”

But the Lakers still have four major scorers and the best players on the roster, James, Davis, Reaves and D'Angelo Russell, who firmly believe they have enough to win games and won't make excuses for their sluggish performances.

Philadelphia's star stars, defending MVP Embiid and leapfrogging fourth-year guard Maxey, beat the Lakers to almost twice as many points.

Embiid had his sixth career triple-double (30 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, one steal, one block) and won a head-to-head battle with Davis (17 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, one steal, one block). Maxey leads all players in scoring (31 points) and has 8 assists. James had 18 points, five assists and no rebounds, the first time he failed to grab a rebound since Nov. 2, 2010.

James said: "We have to play better. ”

The fiasco broke another milestone record for James, who surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the player with the most minutes played in the NBA during the regular season and playoffs (66,319 career minutes, surpassing Abdul-Jabbar's total 66,297 minutes played). In hindsight, James dismissed the achievement.

"It doesn't mean much to me," James said. ”

The 76ers made a season-high 22 three-pointers (46 shots), the most of any game they have made this season. They made 13 three-pointers in the first half, a season-high and more than they averaged in previous games (11.2). By comparison, the Lakers hit just seven of their 28 three-point attempts in the game.

The 76ers made 15 more three-pointers and attempted 18 more three-pointers than the Lakers. In addition to Maxey's five three-pointers, Patrick Beverley and Marcus Morris both made season-high four three-pointers. What's more, the 76ers also made 13 more free throws than the Lakers, hitting twice as many free throws (26 to 13). The huge gap between three-pointers and free throws made it difficult for the Angelenos to handle.

James said: "Outside the three-point line, we were taken out today from outside the three-point line. "

While Davis said the Lakers should "forget" about the results, he believes a sincere, all-out video conference will work wonders for them.

"We have to face it, accept it, take it," Davis said. I know that in the course of the game, we challenge each other. If someone doesn't play well, we will criticize them by name, and of course don't take it personally. "

The Lakers will face the Detroit Pistons on the road before back-to-back games (the second game is in Oklahoma City) and it will be a much-needed "mind-cleansing" for them. Even if Reddish can't return, they will be the favourites to win. (Hamm says Reddish is "very close" to a comeback).

And, as James said, there could be even bigger changes to the team, and for a team aiming to win a championship, the team may consider changing the starting lineup again or adjusting the rotation after such an embarrassing result.

The setback was arguably the Lakers' lowest point of the season – and rarely did they look like a real championship contender in the course of a season like Denver, Boston, Milwaukee or Philadelphia. Earlier this month, they seemed to have hit a low point, suffering three straight defeats and dropping their record to 3-5. After a shock loss to the Houston Rockets on the road, Los Angeles responded with a three-game winning streak, including an impressive fourth-quarter comeback in Phoenix.

How will they respond this time?

Only time will tell, but James made it clear that he was unhappy with Monday's humiliating result, regardless of what the rest of the team thought.

"I don't know the team [how to respond]. I can only speak for myself. I don't like that. "