LeBron James didn’t have the emotional energy to mask his feelings Friday following the Los Angeles Lakers’ 127-113 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.
James led the team’s scoring with 32 points in the effort, but he also went 2-for-6 from the foul line and committed three turnovers in the fourth quarter. When approached by reporters in the locker room about the specifics of the game, James’ answers became increasingly blunt.
“I mean, we just suck right now,” James said, about five questions into his media availability.
It was the 10th loss in 13 games and a fourth consecutive defeat for Los Angeles. The contest put the Lakers’ issues on full display, as they gave up a season-high 23 3-pointers. To make matters worse, Memphis ranks last in the league for 3-point shooting percentage this season. Still, the Lakers had an opportunity to win with the score tied after the third quarter. But it all came crashing down when the Grizzlies outscored the Lakers by 14 points in the fourth.
Things took a comical turn after the 39-year-old was asked about former Cleveland Cavaliers guard Ricky Rubio, who announced his retirement Thursday.
“I’m not really in the mood to answer that question, but I respect Ricky. Congratulations on a hell of a career, and if I don’t seem sincere when you see this video, it’s because we got our a** whooped again,” James said. “I apologize. It was actually bad timing on the interviewer asking me this question.”
LeBron James: “We suck right now.” He also framed LAL’s in-season tournament as “only two games,” suggesting that championship should be given the proper weight pic.twitter.com/a1IaENpWyh
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 6, 2024
Lakers head coach Darvin Ham took a different tone after the loss, saying people need to try to see the big picture.
“I’m tired of people living and dying with every single game we play. It’s ludicrous, actually,” Ham told reporters Friday. “We hit a tough stretch. It’s the same team. We played some high-level games a little while ago, and we’ve just got to get back to that. We’ve got to keep the fight, though. We cannot lose our fight.”
The high-level games referenced in Ham’s answer took place as the Lakers won the inaugural In-Season Tournament Championship on Dec. 9 in Las Vegas. In the four weeks since then, Los Angeles has only beaten the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and Charlotte Hornets.
James rebuffed the idea of the tournament being cited for encouragement.
“That was just two games,” James said. “That was a small sample. Everybody is getting so cracked up about Vegas, keep bringing up Vegas. It was two games. We took care of that business … but that was really just two games.”
Memphis brought some fight to claim the victory Friday. Four players, led by Jaren Jackson Jr.’s 31 points, scored 20 or more.
Even Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins seemed prepared for his own clash in the third quarter. He ran onto the floor mid-game after James wasn’t called for an apparent foul on Jackson. Jenkins somehow wasn’t ejected and apologized following his team’s victory.
Los Angeles is now 17-19, sitting 11th in the Western Conference. The next matchup won’t be an easy rebound either. Sunday, the Lakers play against the Los Angeles Clippers, who have only lost two of their last 16 games.
