With the addition of LeBron James this season, everything was supposed to be so simple. The Lakers would become a contender again and LeBron would be able to get himself into his ninth straight Finals. Well, it hasn't been so easy. Thanks to chemistry issues and injuries down the stretch, the Lakers have found themselves 2.5 games out of a playoff spot, and a losing record of 28-29. The team lost at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night by a score of 117-113.
"This is a tough loss for us," James said according to ESPN. "We didn't have consistent play from all facets of the game. Offensively and defensively, we jacked up a lot of coverages to start the game. In the third quarter we jacked up a lot of our coverages again. It was always playing uphill, like we've been doing of late. We've got to be a lot better."
The Lakers will now be on break thanks to the All-Star game which James feels will be a great time for the team to reconvene and get back into the swing of things so they can make one final playoff push.
"You got to decompress and get away from the game a little bit," James explained. "Those guys will have a lot more time than I will, obviously. I'll be right back into it in two days. But just get fresh, get your minds right, get your bodies right. Come back with the notion that we'll make the playoffs."
With the loss, the Lakers now sit in 10th place in the Western Conference and will be back in action next week.
