Russell Westbrook's turnovers continue to plague Lakers' efforts
At one point, the Lakers' lead was 26.
But slowly, surely –– like a ball of yarn that's been placed on a downhill slope –– they began to unravel at the seams.
It was a disastrous day at the office for the LeBron-less Lakers, whose 123-115 loss to the Thunder culminated in an ejection levied towards Russell Westbrook following a dispute over Darius Bazley's late-game dunk.
But Westbrook looked dejected far before the referees removed him from the competition.
After a hypersonic start saw Westbrook nearing triple-double waters at the start of the second quarter (he had five points, seven boards and nine assists with nine minutes to play in the period), No. 0's night turned from dominant to dud.
He would notch another triple-double to add to his career registry by game's end (20 points, 14 boards, 13 assists), but that stat line was marred by a double-digit tally in another category: turnovers.
Westbrook handed out readymade care packages to Thunder players as the game wore on, and they welcomed his gifts with open arms, as they slowly climbed back into contention.
And like clockwork, OKC's 26-point deficit slowly began to shrink –– to 16 at the half, then within single-digits, and before long, the Thunder had their own slim advantage (97-95) heading into the fourth, provided by this deep bank shot from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the buzzer.
The fourth quarter was the worst for the Lakers all night.
They still had 12 minutes left to play after SGA's majestic rainbow shot, but it was clear that OKC had taken the wind right from Los Angeles' sails.
A now-spirited Thunder troupe was irrepressible from there, building an eight-point lead by the five-minute mark, and holding steadfast through crunch time. L.A. showed signs of life with a brief run to come within three, but Malik Monk and Carmelo Anthony hoisted two consecutive air balls within the final minute to stamp the win for OKC.
Then came the altercation, prompted by one of basketball's oldest unwritten rules: You don't score in the closing seconds when the game's virtually over.
Westbrook spoke candidly about the scrum following the game.
Westbrook was visibly frustrated, and understandably so. But the Lakers' own on-court product –– not that of their opponent's –– was where the problem truly resides according to Skip Bayless.
"[OKC] is just a bunch of children, and you allowed them to come back from 26 points down?" Bayless questioned on Thursday's episode of "Undisputed."
"The great painful irony was Russ goes back to OKC and what did he do? Another triple-double, but it turned into a quadruple with 10 turnovers. His greatest strength is his greatest weakness. He plays so hard, but he's out of control. He's a point guard who has a lousy feel for the game of basketball, and yet he's a first-ballot Hall of Famer. It's because he plays so hard."
"James Worthy concluded that it was the ugliest loss in Lakers history, given the fact that this team is the consensus pick to win the West, and given the fact that going into last night, everybody would've ranked the OKC Thunder as the worst team in pro basketball."
Shannon Sharpe was equally dismayed.
"Things are going well, and all of a sudden, they said, ‘Man we’re good.' They gave up 37 in the second quarter, and said, ‘I know we can do better.' Then gave up 41 in the third."
Sharpe felt that LeBron James' presence in the lineup would've turned the tide indefinitely.
"Had LeBron been there I don't think they lose this game, because LeBron takes the ball out of Russ' hands. Westbrook's taking ill-advised shots, and he can't help himself. We are what we repeatedly do. What has he repeatedly done over the last eight years? Been first or second in turnovers. … He's an inefficient, ball-dominant, high-turnover player."
The problems are rearing themselves with full transparency, and many of them start right at No. 0's front stoop.
We'll see if he can get them off his porch.
