The Lakers were valiant in defeat to the cardiac Spurs on Monday, but they found themselves in defeat nonetheless. LeBron James had a strong second half and hit a 30-footer to send it to overtime, but missed some crucial free throws in extra time and Patty Mills sealed the San Antonio victory with a Bibbyesque curl and swish.
San Antonio is now 2-1 despite not looking particularly good at any point. The Lakers are now 0-3 despite being in every game. That might fly in the East, but LeBron’s team is digging itself a wee bit of a whole. Obviously, one week in is too early to actually determine anything. But if one week becomes two, and two becomes four, L.A. could be in a pickle. You can’t win a playoff spot in the first month of the season, but you can absolutely lose one.
We’ve seen in the West over the last few years how much comes down to how little. Three games separated the No. 3 seed from the No. 9 seed last year. Every loss matters in this conference when you’re fighting for a playoff spot. So remember this one if the Lakers are on the verge of failure in April. They all count.
On the bright side, the Lakers might have found another player who isn’t a disaster!
Scores
Magic 93, Celtics 90
Hornets 106, Raptors 127
Knicks 113, Bucks 124
Pacers 91, Timberwolves 101
Bulls 109, Mavericks 115
Grizzlies 92, Jazz 84
Wizards 125, Blazers 124 (OT)
Suns 103, Warriors 123
Spurs 143, Lakers 142 (OT)
Schedule
Only three games on Tuesday, but all of them watchable ...
Sixers at Pistons, 7 p.m. ET, NBA TV
Clippers at Pelicans, 8 p.m. ET
Kings at Nuggets, 9 p.m. ET
Links
Remember Darius Bazley, the high-end prospect who committed to Syracuse but then pulled out to join the G League but then pulled out to just work out for the year? He’s getting paid $1 million to rep New Balance this year, reports the Times’ Marc Stein. Hella good internship. Also, he’s the first New Balance endorser in the NBA since James Worthy!
Six players worth overreacting about from Week 1.
Jayson Tatum is making the leap. He’s 20. And the Celtics traded down to get him plus a premium pick!
The beef between Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul has been stewing for 10 years!
Breanna Stewart is still on fire. Forty points on 75 percent shooting in her overseas season debut.
I wrote about why you shouldn’t panic about the 0-3 Thunder. Dan Devine has a slightly different take. Honestly, I’d probably believe him!
Candace Parker talks about analyzing the NBA and the Clippers’ season.
Rembert on Trae Young. As God intended.
Kevin Pelton on the scoring surge.
Nikola Jokic is the perfect star for the Nuggets. In less golden news, Will Barton is out at least five weeks. Michael Malone has had some crummy injury luck in his head coaching career.
Kevin O’Connor with some interesting takeaways from the first week.
James Dolan, whose sports team paid the biggest sexual harassment settlement in history a decade ago, is pursuing revenge against a media member who dared point that out. Seems like a good strategy for the rest of the media would be to keep pointing it out.
Why has Avery Bradley struggled so much as a Clipper?
Be excellent to each other.