LeBron James criticized Luka Doncic for a decision during the Los Angeles Lakers’ recent loss. On Thursday, James made a questionable choice himself in the closing seconds, which allowed Royce O’Neale to score the winning basket in a 113-110 defeat against the Phoenix Suns.
O’Neale made a wide-open three-pointer with 1.7 seconds remaining. This was due to a defensive mix-up by the Lakers, as James left his assignment to help on Grayson Allen, who was already being guarded by two Lakers. After this loss, the Lakers are now only one game ahead of the Suns and are outside the play-in tournament.
Lakers struggled defensively
It wasn’t just the final play that highlighted the Lakers’ poor defense. The Suns played without injured players Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks, who average a total of 45.6 points per game. Phoenix had failed to reach 100 points in regulation for their previous four games.
Despite this, the Lakers allowed the Suns to shoot 44 percent from beyond the arc and 46 percent overall, with Allen and Collin Gillespie both making six three-pointers. Los Angeles had an 11-point lead in the third quarter but fell behind by 12 points in the fourth.
The Lakers managed to come back, led by Doncic’s nine consecutive points (41 points, eight rebounds, eight assists). While the team has plenty of offensive talent, the breakdown on defense during the critical moment was unacceptable, especially coming from James.