The Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Brooklyn Nets 107-99 on Sunday afternoon to collect loss No. 53 on the season. After three games on the sidelines due to his coach's decisions, Jordan Hill returned to the floor, and the power forward looked refreshed with 22 points and 16 rebounds.
Due to a sluggish and ugly start, the Lakers dug a deep ditch and failed to ever get out. The Nets led Sunday's game wire-to-wire. However, the visitors did not simply roll over and cave; the Lakers managed to climb within three points with 3:49 to play in the ball game. Once again, the Lakers deserved credit for playing hard and not quitting after falling behind by as many as 14 points against the Nets.
Down the final stretch, however, Deron Williams and Brook Lopez took over and settled the contest for good.
Lopez finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds in one of his more dominant performances of the season. Lopez topped 30 points for only the fourth time this season. Williams added 13 points and nine assists on the day.
Contributing to the Lakers' slow start, Jeremy Lin sat out the game due to an upper respiratory infection. Lin's absence certainly did not help the Lakers' cause, as the point guard has been a source of points early in games since moving into the starting lineup.
Along with Lin sitting out, Ed Davis missed his first game of the season. Davis was available, but Lakers coach Byron Scott sat down the 25-year-old to provide Hill minutes on the floor. Unfortunately, the coach's decision may ultimately cost Davis his shot at reaching the minimum to qualify for NBA league leaders in field goal percentage.
Davis must make 300 shots by the end of the season to qualify for the NBA's official statistical leaders. With 10 games remaining, Davis needs 42 more makes. Should he hit that number, the fifth-year professional would rank second in the NBA in field goal percentage behind only DeAndre Jordan of the LA Clippers.
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Also, Carlos Boozer sat out for the fourth game in a row despite being available. As the Lakers evaluate talent, the 33-year-old forward playing at any point for the remainder of the season would appear pointless given where the Lakers stand.
Next, the Lakers play in Philadelphia on Monday evening at 4 p.m. Pacific Time.
