LeBron James has never experienced such a crushing basketball loss as he did with Los Angeles in Philadelphia.
James has experienced significant losses in the past. In the NBA Finals, his Miami Heat team was defeated by a score of 36 points. In 2019, Indiana Pacers defeated James and Lakers by a score of 42.
However, this rout was unprecedented: by the time Joel Embiid secured a triple-double in the third quarter, the 76ers had defeated the Lakers 138-94 on Monday night, making the 44-point defeat the worst of James’ career dating back to 2003.
“What has to happen differently for it to not occur again? A lot,” James said, stating the obvious.
The Lakers’ dismal milestones continued to pile up. In 290 games across the series, it was their worst defeat to the 76ers.
James didn’t even collect a rebound because it was so terrible.
Alright, one more: the Lakers were defeated by the 76ers for the sixth game in a row.
“That’s my favorite team,” Embiid said, mentioning once again that Kobe Bryant taught him the game of basketball. “You want to win every time I play against them. Nevertheless, I play versus every other team every night.
Part of the tale is revealed via the box score. Even with Embiid sitting out the whole fourth quarter, the 76ers outscored the Lakers 40–14, making 22 3-pointers to just seven for the Lakers.
James said, “We got killed on the 3-point line.” “They fired shots. Give them due credit.
The remainder? The 76ers led by 25 points in the first half, so it was just a sluggish effort from a squad that seemed to have given up early. This was a fine night to call it quits.
Lakers coach Darvin Ham said, “You have to have a high level of competitive spirit.” It must be almost impenetrable to some extent. Force must be met with force. We were outworked by them.
With 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists for his sixth career triple-double, Embiid, the current NBA MVP, concluded with a perfect score. Embiid had his first of the season and his eighth game with ten or more assists in his career.
The much-anticipated confrontation between Embiid and James never truly happened. James played 29 minutes and scored 18 points, but his efforts were unable to cut into the 76ers’ advantage. With postseason play included, he has now played more minutes than any other player in NBA history.
James responded, “That doesn’t mean much to me.”
For the 76ers, Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points. For the Lakers, Anthony Davis finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
With 26 shots, the 76ers hit 13, a halftime season high, to start the game with three 3-pointers.
Maxey scored four. However, the Lakers paid for it by leaving available any Sixer who wasn’t named Embiid or Maxey. Marcus Morris Sr. went three for three, while Patrick Beverley made three in the first half. Embiid made a bury to lead 64–39.
In the first half, the Lakers missed seven of ten three-pointers.
Embiid stopped Davis with such force that the slap could be heard rows away from the floor, with Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts observing from courtside.
Maxey attempted to bolster his candidacy for his first All-Star selection by scoring 20 points at the half. With 17, Embiid is attempting to win the scoring championship for the third time in a row.
The 76ers coach, Nick Nurse, said, “You certainly don’t go into a game like this expecting that kind of game to break out.” “I think that just energizes everybody when the three ball starts going in the way they did early.”
The 76ers wrapped up their 12th victory quickly.
When forward Paul Reed referred to Davis as “a big flopper,” they also received points for derogatory remarks.
“You know he’s going to be flailing,” Reed said during the shootout.
The question of why a backup pushed Davis puzzled both coaches.
“Guard him, I suppose. Paul, best of luck,” said Ham.
Not that it matters. Fouls and flops were never a major concern since the game was never competitive enough.
Following a two-game losing run, the 76ers won their second straight and could soon welcome back Kelly Oubre Jr. Before suffering injuries in what was reportedly a hit-and-run incident, Oubre averaged 16.3 points over eight games. He took part in the shootaround and could travel with the 76ers for their next two road games.
Next up
Lakers: Play two consecutive away games in Detroit on Wednesday and Oklahoma City on Thursday.
76ers: Travel to New Orleans on Wednesday and Boston on Friday to play games.
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