The Los Angeles Lakers keep sliding down the Western Conference standings, and the schedule isn’t going to get easier.
The stumbling Lakers have dropped 13 of their past 20 games as they enter a home contest against the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.
After Thursday’s game, Los Angeles will begin a six-game road excursion that includes a visit to the Boston Celtics on Feb. 1. The Lakers next play at home Feb. 8 against the Denver Nuggets.
There’s a chance LeBron James (ankle) will not play against the Bulls and miss his second straight game. He sat out the Lakers’ 127-116 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday.
Lakers coach Darvin Ham said James is day-to-day and added that the team is being cautious.
D’Angelo Russell starred for Los Angeles with 27 points and 10 assists against the Clippers to continue his recent stellar play. He is averaging 27.2 points and 7.0 assists over the past six games.
Ham said his club gave a top-notch effort against the Clippers despite the negative result.
“I think the lesson (Tuesday) is how we competed, how we competed together,” Ham said. “Again, guys taking accountability for mistakes and not making them twice.
“Trying to get better defensively as the game was ticking away. Disappointed in the loss but proud of how our guys competed minus LeBron.”
Anthony Davis contributed 26 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers and has six straight double-doubles.
Chicago will try to bounce back after blowing a 23-point lead on Monday and eventually falling 115-113 to the host Phoenix Suns. Kevin Durant hit the game-winning jumper with 1.6 seconds left for the Suns.
The Bulls outplayed Phoenix for most of the game before things got away from them as they dropped to 7-14 on the road.
“I care about wins and losses. As a unit we care about wins and losses,” Chicago guard Coby White said. “So this will hurt us a while. We played so hard and fought and played so well the majority of the game. It was fun to compete. We were going back and forth. They hit timely shots, we hit timely shots.”
White was superb against Phoenix, as he scored 26 points, matched his career high of 10 rebounds and added nine assists. He had a bigger role with Zach LaVine (ankle) sidelined for the second straight game. LaVine is expected to sit out Thursday as well.
White, a fifth-year pro, is averaging 18.8 points while starting all 45 of Chicago’s games. He started just twice in 74 appearances last season, when he averaged 9.7 points.
“Coby was great,” said Bulls star DeMar DeRozan, who had 21 points against Phoenix. “The thing about Coby is how hard he works, how resilient he is, the competitor he is. It’s been amazing just to watch how comfortable he is getting, making big shots and plays, being aggressive the way he handles the ball, creates his own shots, finishes at the basket. He deserves more credit than he’s getting with the improvement. It’s been impressive.”
Chicago has won four of the past five meetings between the teams, including a 124-108 home win on Dec. 20. DeRozan scored 27 points on 12-of-16 shooting for the Bulls, while James had 25 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Lakers.
–Field Level Media
