LAKERS USE DEFENSE TO TAKE DOWN KINGS
LOS ANGELES — As he was asked about the play, Lonzo Ball smiled sheepishly, like a kid who got caught trying to steal an extra cookie.
In the second quarter on one of the Los Angeles Lakers’ many fast breaks, Ball tossed the ball up for an alley-oop opportunity for forward Julius Randle. But he didn’t lob it in the air for Randle to simply catch, he threw it off the backboard and it caromed off it a little too hard. Randle somehow corralled it to score.
“It’s just how I play,” Ball said. “Kind of wild. Kind of free. I’m glad he made it. I saw Luke going to the bench if he didn’t make it. I don’t know how he caught it but it went in.”
Ball only finished the game with one turnover, and added 11 of the Lakers’ 30 assists. Just as easily, though, that play could have turned into another missed opportunity for the Lakers.
It was ugly outside and ugly inside Staples Center on Tuesday night. On a rainy evening, the Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings, 99-86, while committing 26 turnovers, making only 62 percent of their free throws and giving up multiple runs to a shorthanded Kings team. Both teams are now 13-27 this season.
“I thought we gave an effort tonight that was awesome but we have got to get better at the mental part of the game,” Walton said. “... We’ve been struggling, we will take a win when we can get it but it doesn’t feel the same way when you play the game the right way throughout.”
Randle led the Lakers with 22 points and 14 rebounds. Lonzo Ball scored five points on 2-of-10 shooting, but had 11 rebounds and 11 assists. Brook Lopez added 18 points, including five three-pointers. Bogdan Bogdanovic led the Kings with 19 points while Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox scored 15 points on six-of-16 shooting.
Ball became the third player this season to have at least 10 assists, 10 rebounds and five steals _ the other two are James Harden and LeBron James.
“He creates our pace for us, he makes winning plays for us,” Walton said of Ball. “He gets other people easy shots. He impacted the game on both ends of the floor and was a big part of why we won tonight; 11 assists and only one turnover.”
The Lakers seemed to blow open the game early, using a 21-2 run in the first quarter to take a 26-8 lead over the Kings. But as Walton began subbing out his starters, the Lakers’ lead began to dwindle. With 4:30 left in the quarter, he removed Lopez and Randle, with the rest of the starters following soon after.