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Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James
The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a beatdown at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night, losing by a final score of 136-108.
While that final score is brutal, to say the least, the Lakers did not have a full roster. They were severely shorthanded, with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Marcus Smart, and Deandre Ayton all among the players who sat out of the game.
Bronny James played a big role for Los Angeles in the blowout loss. He played 25 minutes, scoring 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting and knocking down both of his three-point attempts. He also chipped in with six assists, three rebounds, and a block.
Following the game, James was asked about his team and the future of its season. What he said in return put the rest of the NBA on notice.
Bronny James Doesn’t Hold Back About Los Angeles Lakers’ Belief
At this point in the season, the Lakers are 32-21 following their loss to the Spurs. They are a potential contender in the Western Conference, although consistency hasn’t been great thus far.
James made it very clear that Los Angeles believe it can make a deep run in the playoffs.
Our team believes that we can be contenders and make a deep playoff run,” James said. “We all believe that.”
With the presence of both Doncic and LeBron, the Lakers have a fighting chance to make that statement come true. However, the team will need to improve in multiple different areas in order to be a true NBA Finals contender.
Ahead of the NBA trade deadline, Los Angeles failed to make any high-impact moves. Rob Pelinka was able to acquire sharpshooter Luke Kennard in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks. Outside of that move, nothing was done.
Taking a Closer Look at the Western Conference Playoff Race
Currently, the Lakers hold the No. 5 in the Western Conference standings. They would make the playoffs if the season ended today and would be able to put up a strong fight against any team they faced in the playoffs.
Above Los Angeles in the standings are the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio, Houston Rockets, and Denver Nuggets. The Minnesota Timberwolves are tied for the No. 5 seed with the Lakers, while the Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers, and Los Angeles Clippers are currently in the play-in tournament area.
On paper, the Lakers should be a contender. That being said, there have been clear defensive issues and some chemistry problems at time.
JJ Redick has his work cut out for him to lead this Los Angeles team to a championship. It’s possible that the Lakers could win it all, but they certainly aren’t favored to do so right now.
Evan Massey Evan Massey is a sports reporter and analyst located in Indianapolis, Indiana who covers the NFL, NBA, MLB, WNBA, and college sports. He has been featured on many publications, including Newsweek, Athlon Sports, ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, Forbes, Bleacher Report, Sporting News, and many others. In his free time, Evan enjoys spending time with his wife and son. More about Evan Massey
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