Lakers Suffer Loss to Hornets as Luka Doncic Struggles to Find Rhythm

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The Los Angeles Lakers opened the second half of the NBA season with a loss, and they're still waiting for a signature Luka Doncic performance. After leading by as many as 13 points in the third quarter, the Lakers went without a field goal for six minutes while the Hornets took over at Crypto.com Arena. A LeBron James-led comeback then erased a nine-point lead, but the Hornets pulled out the 100-97 win in the end.

The loss pushed the Lakers' record to 32-21, and 1-2 with Doncic in the lineup. After scoring 14 points in his Lakers debut and 16 in his second game, Doncic once again struggled with efficiency coming out of the All-Star break. He finished with 14 points on 5-of-18 shooting (1 of 9 from 3-point range) with 11 rebounds, eight assists, and six turnovers. He was in foul trouble for much of the game. Down the stretch, it was LaMelo Ball running things for the Hornets, sometimes at Doncic's expense.

James had 26 points on 10-of-20 shooting with 11 assists, seven rebounds, two blocks, and two turnovers. More than half of his points came in the fourth quarter. The game against the Hornets carried some intrigue because of the trade deadline move that went up in smoke last week. Hornets center Mark Williams was supposed to become Doncic's primary lob threat in the paint, but the Lakers killed the trade after his physical, leaving them with a big man duo of Jaxson Hayes and the recently signed Alex Len. Williams had a moment after the game with Dalton Knecht, the rookie who would have headed to Charlotte had the trade gone through.

Williams posted 10 points and nine rebounds, while Hayes and Len combined for eight points and five rebounds. As head coach JJ Redick announced before the game, the Lakers used a 10-man rotation for the game, a reflection of everyone getting healthy and Los Angeles still trying to figure out its ideal rotation for a team built around the ball-dominant James and Doncic. Len, Dorian Finney-Smith, Gabe Vincent, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Dalton Knecht all saw at least 10 minutes each off the bench. The Lakers' next game will be Thursday against the Portland Trail Blazers in the second half of a back-to-back, where they will look to get back on track and find a rhythm with Doncic, who is still adjusting to his new team and role in the offense.

The bigger question for the Lakers is when exactly Doncic will get things going. It is definitely acceptable for a player like Doncic, adjusting to a complete upheaval of his career and returning from an injury, to have a slow start, but he is currently shooting 16 of 45 as a Laker and has yet to crack 20 points. Some of his turnovers were plain sloppy. Fortunately, Los Angeles still has plenty of runway to get things going for the playoffs. The Lakers will need to find a way to get Doncic involved and playing to his strengths, which includes his ability to score and create for others, and make adjustments to their strategy to maximize his impact on the court. The team's performance will be crucial in determining their chances of success in the playoffs.