Wednesday night marked the beginning of a difficult three-game road journey for the Los Angeles Lakers, as they hosted the Chicago Bulls.
Gabe Vincent’s return from a knee injury put the Lakers at full vigor for the first time all season, but that did not matter as they still fell behind 124-108.
In recent weeks, point guard Coby White has elevated his performance in the Lakers’ absence of the injured Zach LaVine. He continued this trend early in this contest by nailing a midrange bank that opened the scoring before LeBron James converted a layup for the Lakers.
James was in dominant form early on, burying a triple and then a thunderous dunk to give the Lakers a 9-4 lead and compel the Bulls to call timeouts.
However, Chicago responded well to the timeout, as White and Alex Caruso each made two-pointers and triples to spark a 10-0 run that was capped by Anthony Davis.
In contrast, the Lakers remained lackluster and the Bulls were on a tear, which gave Chicago its first double-digit lead.
In the first quarter, Vincent made an immediate impact for the Lakers with an assist, but the team faced setbacks, trailing 33-22 entering the second period. Despite a 13-0 run by James, the Bulls maintained a lead. Prince’s 3-pointers extended the Lakers’ offensive force, narrowing the deficit to two points at halftime. In the third quarter, Davis and James showed strength, but Davis rolled his ankle, allowing the Bulls to regain the lead. Hachimura’s three-pointer kept the Lakers within 12 points. Despite Davis returning in the fourth quarter, the Lakers couldn’t overcome DeRozan’s dominance and role players’ contributions for the Bulls, leading to another defeat.
