.png)
Lakers boo’d by Los Angeles crowd at Crypto.com arena
After an off-season full of moves, it was hard to tell what the season would look like for the Los Angeles Lakers.
But sitting in ninth and on the outside of the traditional playoff top eight teams, wasn’t the first thought.
This reared its ugly head Sunday, Feb. 27 versus the New Orleans Pelicans. In the third quarter of a 123-95 loss to the Pelicans, the Lakers were serenaded with a series of boo’s from their home crowd.
It was the second of three straight losses for the team, dropping them to 2-7 in the last nine as well.
Los Angeles players have made more headlines in the media than on the court as of late, criticizing the fan’s decision to voice their frustrations.
Former MVP Russell Westbrook being at the brunt of a lot of the displeasures.
The Lakers will play the LA Clippers Thursday, March 3.
This season, the Clippers have won all three previous meetings against the Lakers this season.
DeRozan’s 30-point streak snapped
The streak of 10 straight 30-plus points for all-star guard DeMar DeRozan was snapped on the road at Miami.
The Heat beat DeRozan’s Chicago Bulls, 112-99, Monday, Feb. 28 from FTX Arena.
DeRozan’s streak ended one-game shy of tying the franchise record posted by Hall-of-Fame shooting guard Michael Jordan.
The Compton, California native, averaged 36.9 points per game during the 10-game stretch, leading the Chicago Bulls to a 7-3 record.
In addition, DeRozan shot 57% from the field, passing Hall-of-Fame center Wilt Chamberlain for the most consecutive games with 35 points or more on 50% shooting or better.
Chamberlain’s longest streak was six while DeRozan’s reached seven.
Ja puts up 50-piece
The record-breaking season for all-star guard Ja Morant is continuing at a rapid pace.
Morant put up a career-high 52 points Monday, Feb. 28 in a 118-105 win over the San Antonio Spurs in Memphis.
His performance had everything you can think of including a poster dunk, buzzer-beater with 0.4 left on the clock and lastly, the 50-piece to ice the night.
Center Jakob Poetl was caught on the poster that may serve as Dunk of the Year when Morant caught him just outside the restricted area right before halftime.
Already up nine with 0.4 to play before halftime, Morant leaped in the air, caught a sailing full-court inbound pass from center Steven Adams and threw it into the basket for a double-digit halftime lead as time expired.
As he drifted out of bounds on his buzzer-beating shot, Morant was lifted up by the Memphis bench while he held both arms straight up in the air with two clenched fists.
Lastly, Morant ended his night with 52 points on 22-of-30 shooting, including going a perfect 4-of-4 from three-point range.
Morant has posted 44 points or more in three of the last four games while this marks his sixth game of 40 points or more this season.