Two struggling teams that have endured significant defeats in recent days will face off on Sunday night when the Los Angeles Lakers host the Portland Trail Blazers.
Both teams have lost three straight games and seven of their past nine, sinking in the Western Conference standings.
Earlier this week, the Lakers suffered back-to-back road losses by 29 points to the Minnesota Timberwolves and 41 points to the Miami Heat before falling 134-132 in overtime to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night.
Despite the improved effort, a late defensive breakdown allowed Atlanta’s Trae Young to hit an open 3-pointer with 7.4 seconds left, securing the victory for the Hawks.
LeBron James recorded his seventh triple-double of the season and the 119th of his career with 39 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds. However, the recent setbacks have frustrated the 39-year-old, who is unhappy with the team’s struggles.
Anthony Davis also had a standout performance with 38 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.
He is similarly perplexed as to why the Lakers are just one game over .500 and currently sitting in 10th place in the Western Conference.
Los Angeles guard Austin Reaves (back/pelvis) has missed the past four games, but the Lakers are hopeful he can play against the Trail Blazers.
Portland has endured back-to-back lopsided losses, falling 127-105 to the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday before being routed 141-99 by the visiting Utah Jazz on Friday night.
The Jazz, who had just four wins entering the contest, led by as many as 46 points. The home fans expressed their dissatisfaction with the Trail Blazers’ subpar performance.
Utah dominated the boards with a 61-34 rebounding advantage and also outscored Portland 39-18 in fast-break points.
The rebounding woes were exacerbated by the absences of Robert Williams III (concussion) and rookie Donovan Clingan (knee).
A poor effort by Deandre Ayton was also a major issue. Ayton played briefly at the start of the second half before Billups pulled him, ending his night at 17 minutes.
Forward Toumani Camara (right foot) was injured against the Jazz, and Billups said tests will determine the severity of his issue.
Second-year point guard Scoot Henderson (quadriceps) also remains sidelined.
Jerami Grant and Dalano Banton each scored 19 points for Portland.
The Lakers went 3-0 against the Trail Blazers last season.
