04 January 2024 , 18:26
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LeBron James left the Crypto.com Arena without speaking to reporters after the Los Angeles Lakers suffered a 110-96 defeat to Miami Heat.
James, 39, scored a season-low 12 points and only made six of 18 shots, including zero of six three-point attempts, during the home game against his former team. The defeat means the Lakers are now 2-8 over their last ten games since winning the NBA In-Season Tournament in Las Vegas.
With this latest loss, they dip below .500 at 17-18, which is only good enough for 10th in the Western Conference and the final play-in tournament spot. It extends their losing streak to three games after losing to the New Orleans Pelicans and West-leading Minnesota Timberwolves over New Year.
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"We're losing," Austin Reaves told reporters after the game, describing the team's mood as "s***ty." He added: "Anytime you lose, the vibe should be off, you know? If I went in [the locker room] and the vibe wasn't off after the rough stretch that we've had, then I'd be concerned. That's really it."
Reaves further clarified his comments: "When I say the vibe is off, it's not like we don't like each other. It's (that) we're losing.
He added: "But I don't want to get that twisted on us not liking each other. Everybody in the locker room gets along." The team will face the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, one of only five teams below them in the West.
Lakers starter Austin Reaves spoke honestly about the atmosphere inside the locker room (Harry How/Getty Images)Despite a 5-4 record since Ja Morant's return from suspension, they also lost against the new-look Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. Anthony Davis emphasised the need to break their losing streak soon.
"We just got to compete, play hard, and go out with a mindset of a must-win mentality, and hopefully that can propel us over to get back to .500 on Friday and then kind of put a streak together at home," he said. "I mean, we've been a really good home team (11-5) thus far, and we got an opportunity to continue to build on that."
Under-fire head coach Darvin Ham called for more from his players after the game. "We got to attack and be more competitive, but we need guys to step up and play better," he said.
"The reason we signed them is because we know what they can do. And so you got to come with that confidence each and every night, and you got to fight through it.
"Things not going your way, you can't ball up in the corner somewhere and go cry about it. You got to step up and try to see how you can best assist your team in being successful."
"I think everything is on the table that makes sense," Ham said when asked about the prospect of making starting lineup changes. "No stone shall go unturned. We're here to explore whatever we can to right the ship."
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