Lakers at Trail Blazers
The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off the worst loss in franchise history and attempt to notch a much better performance when they visit the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday. The Lakers were routed 122-73 by the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, and the 49-point margin of defeat marked their second 40-point loss during a stretch in which they have suffered six defeats in the last seven games.
Los Angeles owns the worst record in the Western Conference and first-year coach Luke Walton questioned both the effort and the team's mental makeup, and rookie forward Brandon Ingram was one of the players who accepted responsibility. "I think I played a big part of that," Ingram told reporters. "We don't need to have any more games like that. There's going to be nights like that but shouldn't be nights when we don't compete. I don't think I competed at a level I could have and I don't think we competed at that level." Portland snapped a four-game losing streak with a 127-123 road victory over the Boston Celtics but has been unable to maintain a groove. Shooting guard C.J. McCollum scored 35 points against Boston after averaging just 15.3 points over the previous three games.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
ABOUT THE LAKERS (16-32): Walton said his young team has a tendency to relax after a victory but he also wasn't offended by the lackluster effort. "I don't feel disrespected. I feel angry that I know we're better than this," Walton told reporters. "I know the work our guys are putting in, they should expect and deserve better results than that. I also understand you really have to learn how to play every single night." Los Angeles remains without second-year point guard D'Angelo Russell due to knee and calf injuries and the trio of Jose Calderon, Jordan Clarkson and Ingram will all receive opportunities to guard Portland star Damian Lillard.
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (19-27): Portland forward Meyers Leonard has experienced a disappointing season but he was superb against Boston by scoring a season-best 17 points and going 6-of-7 from field, including hitting all four 3-point attempts. "The past couple days I've watched film and tried to continue to work as much as I can on my shot and it's feeling much better, much more fluid," Leonard told reporters. "My goal is continue to work and kind of weather the storm individually because I know I can help this team in many ways, not just on the offensive end." The fifth-year pro is shooting a career-worst 37.2 percent and averaging 5.7 points, a sharp decrease from last season's career-high 8.4 average.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Trail Blazers are 2-0 against the Lakers this season and have won the past 10 meetings.
2. Lillard topped 20 points in each of the past five games and is averaging 27 during the stretch.
3. Los Angeles was outscored by 45 points in the 36 minutes Ingram (2-of-12 shooting) was on the court against Dallas.