What was supposed to be a celebratory night for LeBron James turned into a disappointing rout as the Los Angeles Lakers fell 128-106 to the Detroit Pistons.
LeBron, turning 41 on the day of the game, scored 17 points with four rebounds and four assists. However, the future Hall of Famer had his birthday spoiled as Detroit pulled away decisively.
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Luka Doncic led LA with 30 points and 11 assists, but he did commit eight turnovers. The Pistons dominated the Lakers in the paint with 74 points. They proved how undersized LA’s frontcourt is.
Detroit was led by Cade Cunningham, who dropped 27 points and 11 assists. Bench spark Marcus Sasser added a season-high 19 points, while Isaiah Stewart contributed 15.
Despite losing Tobias Harris early to a hip injury, Detroit never trailed in the second half, outscoring LA 32-18 in the fourth quarter.
The Lakers have now lost four of their last five games, dropping them to 20-11. Their defense has been the main culprit.
Notably, all their losses this season have been by double digits, a troubling trend for a team pairing LeBron with Doncic.
As the new year descends upon us, the Lakers will try to regroup with a win on Friday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
