LeBron James Confesses Lakers’ Struggles Can’t Be Fixed ‘Overnight’ as Same Problems Lead to Back-to-Back Losses

Another day, another third-quarter collapse for the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers once again faltered in the third quarter against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. Despite being down by only two at halftime (62-60), they came out flat, mirroring the same lackluster performance from their previous loss against the Denver Nuggets. And their star, LeBron James doesn’t believe it’s something that’ll just fix overnight.

“We’re not very good defensively or very good offensively the last couple games,” said LeBron James after the game talking to the media. The Lakers were outscored 36 to 18 by the Suns in the 3rd quarter. In fact, the Lakers only managed 40 points in the 2nd half in total. This resulted in another blowout 127-100 loss and their 3rd in a row. The Lakers now stand 10-7 for the season, the same record the team had with Darvin Ham last year. But the 4x champ understands that with a new coach, it’ll take time.

King James explained, “We are a process-oriented team, you know. We understand it’s not going to happen overnight, so you know, you stay even keel. You never get too high and you never get too low.” Against the Nuggets, it was even worse as the Lakers came into the 3rd quarter with a 6-point lead. Then they lost the 3rd quarter by 22 points (37-15)!!

When asked whether these kinds of results change the way the team wants to play, LeBron added, “I mean, obviously, during the course of the game you want to play better. It’s that simple. Obviously you get, ‘What can you do better,’ you’re frustrated at times obviously. But you never get frustrated with the process. It is what it is and you keep working on it.”

The Lakers’ effort was noticeable early, despite Kevin Durant making a three-pointer in his return from injury. But that intensity didn’t last long enough. At the end of the first quarter, they allowed an open three due to a defensive breakdown. This was just a precursor to what came in the 2nd half.

The team’s defensive flaws were on full display—issues in transition, poor rebounding, and not applying enough pressure on the perimeter. However, their biggest problem came when the Suns attacked the basket, and the Lakers simply watched instead of contesting.

They need to figure out the solutions to their problems soon. On Friday, the Lakers will play their last group stage game of the NBA Cup at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder. They need a victory to stay in contention for the knockout rounds, as the point differential could decide the tiebreakers.

LeBron James has lost his flair since D’Angelo Russell has been benched

LeBron James had another rough outing in the Lakers’ 127-100 loss to the Suns, and it’s safe to say Lakers fans were not happy. The superstar struggled on multiple fronts, including turnovers, poor shooting, and a noticeable lack of defensive effort. Fans expect more from the King, especially in these crucial moments.

Lately, LeBron has been battling with consistency. His playmaking has been there, but he’s been turning the ball over way too much. Against the Suns, LeBron notched 10 assists, but also racked up 5 turnovers, which ended up hurting the team when it mattered.

Coach JJ Redick’s decision to bench D’Angelo Russell seems to have impacted LeBron’s performance. In the past nine games, LeBron has committed a whopping 43 turnovers, and that’s got fans talking (and not in a good way). Even the Lakers Nation feels frustrated by the inconsistency and the growing turnover problems.

While LeBron managed to get his teammates involved, his shooting was off—just 2-of-7 from three. As the Suns started pulling away, LeBron’s energy seemed to fade, and despite posting decent numbers, he never fully found his rhythm. It was one of those nights where nothing clicked, and for a guy of his caliber, that’s a hard pill to swallow.