At 8:40 a.m. on December 16, the NBA regular season continued, and the Lakers played away against the Spurs, which must be won. The Spurs are currently on an 18-game losing streak and are firmly at the bottom of the West. After James took a game off, he came into the game.
In the first quarter, Branham scored on a mid-range shot and Reeves missed. Sochan broke the ball and counterattacked, and scored with a violent dunk. Reaves was still able to score on a mid-range shot, but Prince couldn't score a three-pointer. After James made a steal, he made a layup to complete the dunk. Vassell took advantage of the cover and hit a three-point shot. Keldon hit two three-pointers in a row, 13-4! Prince missed the vacancy, and Sochan made a rebound to complete 2+1. Reaves scored two points with a layup, and Vassell hit a three-pointer to make it 21-8! Branham scored a layup, Vassell completed 2+1, and the Spurs led by as many as 18 points at one point. The Lakers were powerless to fight and thought they would fight back, but it didn't work well, and they fell behind 22-42 after the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Lakers played a 15-9 offensive climax and started a counterattack. The Spurs did not show weakness, but resisted all the time, and the game stumbled. The Spurs' three-pointers were very efficient, and they had the last laugh to win 129-115! The Lakers were careless, James had 23 points, 7 rebounds and 14 assists, and Reaves scored 22 points and 7 rebounds. Vassell scored 36 points and was the key to the win.
Head coach Darvin Ham admitted in an interview after the game that the team has different injury problems and needs to be fitter. From thick eyebrows to Russell, Reddish, etc., there are injury problems. The next step is to prepare for the tough battle in the coming week. Reeves is fine, it's just a cramp, not a serious problem.
It is worth mentioning that the Rockets reversed the Grizzlies away today, won 5 consecutive wins, and climbed to 6th place in the West. The Lakers dropped to 8th in the West.