On March 3rd, the Lakers dropped a game in Phoenix against the worst team in the Western Conference. Here we are a few weeks later and the shorthanded Lakers squad, led by LeBron James, drop a game at Madison Square Garden against the team with the worst record in the league - the New York Knicks.
The young Knicks went on a 11-1 run over the last three minutes of the game to clinch the W, snap their 8-game losing streak and sweep the season series against the Lakers.
The team had so many things celebrate, courtesy of Mario Hezonja's game-saving block on LeBron James in the final possession of the game:
Mario Hezonja seals the @nyknicks win with the block! #NewYorkForever pic.twitter.com/95QhCibORm
— NBA (@NBA) March 17, 2019
The New York franchise had all their starters score in double figures, led by point guard Emmanual Mudiay, who finished with 28 points and 8 assists on 8-of-11 shooting from the field. Veteran center DeAndre Jordan had a near triple-double with 15 points, 17 rebounds, and 7 assists.
Hezonja, who clinched the win for the Knicks, had 17 points on 4-of-8 shooting along with 8 rebounds and 2 steals.
For the Lakers, LeBron didn't disappoint with 33 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds but it was simply not enough.
Los Angeles had seven players in double figures but failed to hold on to lead in the closing minutes of the game, registering their eighth loss in nine games over the past month.
Although the Lakers aren't still mathematically eliminated from the Playoffs, this loss drops them nearly nine games off the No. 8 seed in the West with only 12 games left to play.
The team wraps up their five-game East road trip in Milwaukee on Wednesday while the Knicks head to Toronto to face the Raptors on Tuesday.
