The Lakers are in the midst of a mostly inconsistent season. On Friday night, Los Angeles fell apart in the second half against the Brooklyn Nets, losing 21-22.
At one point in the game, the Lakers held a six-point lead, but trailed as they left the locker room in the final two quarters. The Lakers trailed by 24 points in the second half and allowed just 44 points after halftime. This matched the fewest goals allowed in the second half of this season.
The poor performance in the second half drew outspoken criticism from second-year Lakers coach Darvin Ham.
“Talk about two different halves of the story,” Hamm said. “The first half is what we're working on. … And then that inconsistency showed up in the second half and he reared his head. … We have to decide what team we're going to be.”
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Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham watches his team warm up before a game against the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena on January 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Keboke Jansezian/Getty Images)
Ham then suggested the time for excuses was over.
“Enough with the excuses,” Ham continued. “We have to play basketball.”
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Brooklyn coach Jacques Vaughn said at halftime that he wanted his team to be more physical.
The Nets went on a 23-8 run for six minutes in the third quarter to take an 87-78 advantage. Brooklyn took the lead with a 12-4 run that included a 3-pointer by Bridges to take its first lead at 76-74 with 8:09 left in the quarter.
LeBron James wearing No. 23 of the Los Angeles Lakers watches a game at Crypto.com Arena on January 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Tyler Ross/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Lakers played some exciting basketball early in the season as the team sought to win the NBA's first in-season tournament championship, but have been mostly underwhelmed since hoisting the NBA Cup.
The Lakers are 7-13 since the tournament championship game. The team also suffered four-game losing streaks multiple times during that period.
Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham speaks during the first half at Crypto.com Arena on January 15, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Former NBA coach and current television broadcaster Doc Rivers suggested there may have been issues with the Lakers' body language during Friday's loss.
Lakers star Austin Reeves was asked if some of his team's body language in the second half was due to frustration with the way the game was being run.
“No, I think all the body language and frustration comes from losing,” Reeves replied.
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The Lakers currently sit in 10th place in the Western Conference standings.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
