LA Lakers 89-114 Utah Jazz: 5 Hits and flops as LeBron James fails to inspire his team again
The Utah Jazz bullied LA Lakers all night to record a 114-89 win in front of their fans at the Vivint Arena. The Purple and Gold were toothless on both ends of the court as Quin Snyder's men torched them from downtown. The Jazz have now won 22 of their last 24 games.
The match started on an even note with defense dictating most of the proceedings. The Utah Jazz then caught fire from beyond the arc in the second quarter and there was no stopping them. Utah made 22 three-pointers tonight after scoring 28 in their previous outing against the Charlotte Hornets. Their tally of 50 made threes in two consecutive games is an NBA record.
The LA Lakers were let down by all of their players tonight including LeBron James. Frank Vogel's unit hasn't been the same in the absence of Anthony Davis and Dennis Schroder. This was their fourth loss on the trot and the team will surely be looking ahead to the All-Star break.
Without further ado, let us look at the five hits and flops from this game.
#1 Hit: Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz)
Donovan Mitchell was extremely inefficient from the field today. In fact, he scored his first point tonight via a free throw with less than four minutes left on the clock in the second quarter. However, Mitchell played the facilitator's role with aplomb for the Utah Jazz today and almost had a triple-double.
Mitchell managed 13 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists tonight. He penetrated the LA Lakers' defense with his dribbles and more often than not found an open man on the perimeter or underneath the rim.
#2 Flop: LeBron James (LA Lakers)
There's been a lot of talk about LeBron James needing rest but tonight was probably the first time this season that he looked lackadaisical on the court. LeBron was going through his usual offensive game but looked rather laid back even with the LA Lakers trailing big.
King James finished with 19 points, four rebounds and four assists against the Utah Jazz. This also marked the end of the 15-5-5 streak that he was on since the start of this season.
#3 Hit: Mike Conley (Utah Jazz)
Mike Conley used yet another All-Star snub as motivation to dominate the LA Lakers tonight. The 33-year-old scored the first five points of the game for Utah Jazz and was blazing hot from range at the start of the second quarter to give his side the lead.
Conley then focused on all-round play as he set up Rudy Gobert for easy baskets with timely passes and forced turnovers with his defensive solidity. Conley finished with 14 points, eight assists, eight rebounds and two steals.
#4 Flop: Talen Horton-Tucker (LA Lakers)
Talen Horton-Tucker was handed his first start of the season tonight after impressing the coaching staff and players with his efforts off the bench. But the sophomore was entirely off-color as the LA Lakers slumped to another defeat.
Horton-Tucker failed to contain Conley defensively and shot a meager 3-of-12 from the field. He managed to create a few looks for his teammates but that wasn't enough to offset his otherwise mediocre display. Horton-Tucker finished with a -16 plus-minus rating against the Utah Jazz.
#5 Hit: Jordan Clarkson (Utah Jazz)
Runaway Sixth Man of the Year favorite Jordan Clarkson torched his former team tonight with 18 points off the bench. He was the main reason behind the Utah Jazz taking complete control of the game in the second quarter as he scored 13 points alone in this period.
Clarkson defended every LA Lakers possession fiercely and also had an additional four rebounds to his name. With the game being so one-sided, he only had to play 23 minutes tonight.
Also read: LA Lakers 89 Utah Jazz: Twitter shocked as LeBron James and co. get blown out in 4th consecutive loss