One game after resting Rajon Rondo, the Los Angeles Lakers gave LeBron James a night off in what was their fourth preseason game. It created a window of opportunity for others but the end result was a 103-87 loss to the Clippers.
As one may suspect, Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma were most aggressive in their quest to shoulder the scoring load, and Rondo orchestrated the offense to the tune of a game-high 10 assists. Rondo distributed for others while only taking four shots — and making one, a 3-pointer.
When Rondo wasn’t facilitating, the Lakers had stretches where their offense looked stagnant and lacked cohesion. Ingram made just three of his 10 field goal attempts, leading to 10 points. Meanwhile Kuzma had 15 points on 6-for-13 shooting.
JaVale McGee managed to make an impact on both ends of the floor, scoring eight points to go along with nine rebounds and one blocked shot. However, McGee also had four of the Lakers’ 19 turnovers. The team had a stretch of them in the third quarter, which allowed the Clippers to create some separation.
The Clippers took a one-point lead into halftime and remained ahead from the middle of the third quarter on. Patrick Beverly and Danilo Gallinari sat for rest, though Tobias Harris did play and finished with a 18 points in 25 minutes of action.
Lou Williams (19 points), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (12), Montrezl Harrell (11) and Marcin Gortat also scored in double-figures.
Among the silver linings for the Lakers was the play of Ivica Zubac as he put forth a better performance which coincided with improved health and recovery from a virus. Zubac’s level of activity was much better than in previous games, leading to eight points and six rebounds.
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