LeBron James lamented the lack of length on the Los Angeles Lakers roster without the injured Anthony Davis, as the iconic franchise slumped to a poor defeat to the Dallas Mavericks.
On Christmas Day, the Lakers suffered a festive collapse as they conceded 51 points in the third quarter - the most points scored by a team in a single quarter in the NBA this season - to falter against Luka Doncic and co.
The European superstar led the way for Dallas, scoring 32 points and adding nine rebounds as well as nine assists en route to the 124-115 win.
While the victory elevated the Mavericks to an 18-16 record, defeat has left the Lakers languishing 13th in the Western Conference standings at 13-20. Los Angeles had threatened to pull off a remarkable resurgence after a horrific start to the season, but Davis’ injury proved to be a real gut punch that killed their momentum.
Since Davis went down injured, the Lakers have sunk to four successive defeats - and James is clearly concerned about his team’s chances without the dominant former New Orleans Pelicans star. After the loss, James said: “Reality is, without AD, we lose a lot of length, which we don't have already.
“So, we have to make up in ways that, without AD, is very difficult. It's very challenging, at one point we had a lineup where Austin Reaves was our tallest guy on the court, so, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure it out.”
The defeat to the Mavs will undoubtedly hurt, but the form of James in Davis’ absence could be some sort of consolation for head coach Darvin Ham. The 37-year-old scored 38 points in 34 minutes of action, adding five assists and six rebounds as he single-handedly kept the Lakers in the game.
James shot 13-for-23 against Dallas, but it proved to be all for naught with only two others - Russell Westbrook (17) and Austin Reaves (16) - scoring double digits. The four-time NBA MVP used the post-game interview to insist he wants to continue playing in the league and quash any speculation surrounding his retirement, even if he is in his 20th season.
“At the end of the day, I love to play the game of basketball,” James added. “I'm still enjoying going out there and playing in front of fans, either at home or on the road.
“I’m just trying to control what I can control; I show up, try to lead these guys and try to lead to victories.”
The Lakers will have the opportunity to get back to winning ways when they face the 13-21 Orlando Magic on Tuesday night. The Magic have won eight of their last nine clashes, so James and his faltering team face a challenge when they travel to Florida.
