The Los Angeles Lakers just fell to their third consecutive loss after the Dallas Mavericks beat them 128-110 tonight. Not only did the Lakers not have an answer for Luka Doncic who ended the night with 34 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists, they also couldn’t contain the Mavericks’ supporting cast.
6 Mavs outside Luka scored in double digits as the Lakers just couldn’t keep up without LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the lineup. The Mavericks started the game with a 43-point first quarter, which was more than enough to solidify their win, as they look to make a push for the #3 seed in the West.
The Lakers fought back after the game was out of their hand, a pattern we have seen from this Lakers team all year. Head coach Frank Vogel spoke about his team after the game and did not seem happy with what is happening.
Frank Vogel said the Lakers lacked the requisite "toughness, IQ, intelligence, focus and fight" in the 1st half. (Other than that, they crushed it.)
"Poor performance across the board. Coaches, players, everybody," Vogel added. He is not pleased.
— michael corvo (@michaelcorvo_) March 30, 2022
The LA Lakers barely win games with LeBron James in the lineup, so the odds of them winning when he is out of the lineup is quite slim. However, the Lakers did put up a good offensive showing through the game, with 20-point performances from Malik Monk and Russell Westbrook.
This loss means that the Lakers have fallen out of the play-in tournament and currently sit as the 11th seed in the West, behind the New Orleans Pelicans and San Antonio Spurs. However, the news of Anthony Davis nearing his return will be the silver lining this Lakers team needs in the last two weeks of the regular season.
Massive changes to this roster are inevitable, as the Mavericks (like many other opponents) just outclassed the Lakers and put them out of the game before they had a chance to come back. This disastrous season for the Lakers will end if they stay 11th, so a long off-season of changes awaits them.
