Luka Dončić and the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t play their best basketball over the weekend, and it showed in their lackluster performance against the 31-40 Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls ran them off the floor, picking up one of their biggest wins of the season, defeating the Lakers 146-115.
Despite their recent loss, Dončić has remained optimistic about the Lakers and their future.
“I think we’re in a great spot. Obviously, today wasn’t a good game for us,” Dončić said. “But I think we are in a great spot, and we have to battle every game to not get in the Play-In [Tournament] and try to get the highest seed we can.”
Dončić also recognized that the first game back for players who were out due to injury is always hard.
“I think it was more just basketball. It’s always great to have people back, but that first game is always tough, I could tell. And they made a lot of shots,” Dončić said.
Dončić may be looking ahead to the postseason, and rightfully so. At 43-28, the Lakers are looking to maintain their top-four seeding in the conference while possibly jumping the Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets.
Meanwhile, the Memphis Grizzles, who are also 43-28, are hot on their tails and looking to move up in the standings.
After missing two weeks of action, LeBron James returned to the lineup alongside Rui Hachimura. However, their returns weren’t enough to seal the victory in Chicago.
Still, being at full strength is only a good sign for the Lakers with a few weeks to the playoffs; James has played at a level throughout the season, averaging 24.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 8.4 assists on 51 percent shooting from the field.
Hachimura has also proven to be a capable role player and has been a solid role player for the Lakers throughout the years.
Based on Dončić comments, he seems certainly confident about what the Lakers can do come postseason time.
