The Los Angeles Lakers once again lost a game in the closing moments of the fourth quarter when they fell to the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, 113-112.
Russell Westbrook’s game-winning attempt was blocked right before the final horn, and head coach Darvin Ham defended his decision to not call a timeout prior to that.
Darvin Ham on letting Russell Westbrook take the last shot and not calling a timeout: "I'll take that scenario every day of the week and twice on Sundays."
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) January 16, 2023
A heated Darvin Ham on putting the ball in Russell Westbrook's hands and not LeBron's: "Just being down 1 point, and the ball is in Russell Westbrook's hands. I'm comfortable with that. … Make no mistake about it."
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) January 16, 2023
Overall, Westbrook had an outstanding game. He was 7-of-14 from the field, as well as 2-of-5 from 3-point range, allowing him to finish with 20 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists.
With less than a minute left in the fourth quarter, Sixers superstar center Joel Embiid hit a midrange jumper to put his team up by four. But Troy Brown Jr. quickly answered with a 3-pointer to bring L.A. to within one point.
On Philly’s next possession, Embiid missed, and Westbrook grabbed the defensive rebound with 13.3 seconds left and brought the ball downcourt before his jumper with 3.1 seconds remaining was blocked by Georges Niang.
Ham said after the end of the game that he wanted Westbrook to attack in transition in that situation and not allow the Sixers to set up their defense. However, there is also the argument that the Lakers should’ve set up a good set play in order to get off a better shot attempt.
In addition, many would likely argue that Westbrook wasn’t the player the team would want taking a game-winning attempt.
The Lakers are now on a three-game losing streak and have a 19-24 record. Although they’re very much still in the mix for at least a spot in the play-in tournament, time is starting to run out, as they need to give themselves a cushion that can take the edge off later in the season.
They’re still without Anthony Davis, who is reportedly progressing in his recovery from a stress injury in his right foot, as well as Lonnie Walker IV and Austin Reaves. Not having any of them in the lineup has put a lot of pressure on the team, as its margin of error is razor-thin at this point.
