LeBron James and Austin Reeves put it simply: The Lakers lose because they let the Sixers thrive from beyond the arc.
LeBron James and Austin Reeves knew exactly what “killed” the Los Angeles Lakers’ embarrassing loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night: three-pointers.
The 76ers defeated the Lakers 138-94, recording the fourth-worst loss in franchise history. Joel Embiid led the 76ers with a triple-double of 30 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, while Tyrese Maxey also added 31 points, Great night with 3 rebounds and 8 rebounds.
Philadelphia took advantage of Los Angeles’ poor defense and went on a long drive. The 76ers took 46 shots from beyond the arc and made 22 of them. In comparison, the Lakers made only 7 three-pointers in 28 attempts. Maxey shot 5-for-8 from beyond the arc, while Patrick Beverley went 4-for-8 for Philadelphia.
In an interview with reporters after the defeat, James pointed to the 76ers’ three-point shooting as the biggest differentiating factor in this game.LeBron admits This is what “kills” them.
“We got killed on the three-point line today. We covered, they shot. Trust them,” James shared via Spectrum SportsNet.
Reeves agreed with James, saying (from Lakers Nation): “They hit a lot of three-pointers,we do not have. They beat us. “I have no idea.”
While some may think these two are oversimplifying, there’s nothing wrong with LeBron James and Austin Reeves at all. The 76ers basically scored 66 points through three-pointers, while the Lakers scored 21 points. That’s a 45-point difference, and the game would certainly have been closer if the Phillies weren’t so efficient from deep.
But at the end of the day, Davenham’s men can only learn from this. If they want to be a championship contender again, they can’t allow a strong team like the 76ers to succeed offensively. The Lakers face tough tests against the Detroit Pistons, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets the rest of the week. The Thunder and Houston both have winning records, and if Los Angeles defends like it did Monday night, both teams will be ready to attack.