Lakers, LeBron James blow out Hornets in brutal shooting night for Kemba Walker

There is plenty wrong with the Charlotte Hornets right now, and it starts with their star’s shooting.

All-Star point guard Kemba Walker shot 2-of-13 from the field and 0-of-5 from 3-point range before taking a seat for the night in the Hornets’ 128-100 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. That following a fourth quarter and overtime in Friday’s loss to the New York Knicks in which Walker shot 1-of-10 from the field and 0-of-5 from 3-point range.

Meanwhile, LeBron James, who signed with the Lakers over the summer, had his second triple-double this season with 24 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. James’ teammate, point guard Lonzo Ball, also assembled a triple-double, with 16 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.

This was only the second time in Lakers history two players had triple-doubles in the same game: The prior one was in 1982 by Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

The Hornets dropped their second in a row to fall to 14-15 on the season. They had won a season-best three in a row prior to Friday’s loss to the Knicks.

Walker, ninth in the NBA in scoring at 25.6 points per game, finished with a season-low four Saturday. Hornets rookie Miles Bridges had his best scoring game this season with 17 points. Malik Monk scored 19 and added five rebounds.

Three who mattered

James: That was his 27th victory in the past 28 meetings with the Hornets/Bobcats.

JaVale McGee: Most impressive, considering he was sick with the flu, that Lakers center made nine of his first 10 shots

Miles Bridges: Hornets rookie seemed to find where his high-quality shots are.

Observations

▪ The Hornets had an uncharacteristic problem with turnovers Friday in the loss to the New York Knicks, and it carried into Saturday: They gave up the ball nine times, resulting in 12 Lakers points. Entering this game, the Hornets averaged a league-best 12.3 turnovers per game.

▪ Hornets coach James Borrego got very improvisational with his first-half rotation, at one time playing 6-7 rookie Miles Bridges at center.

▪ Former Hornet Lance Stephenson, now a Lakers reserve, was charged with a taunting technical after hitting a 3-pointer in the second half.

▪ Funny bit the Hornets did during a first-quarter timeout, spoofing bandwagon fans who have followed James from Cleveland to Miami, back to Cleveland to the Lakers.

Worth mentioning

▪ The Hornets sold out Spectrum Center for the Lakers’ only appearance this season. Attendance - 19,641 - is a record for an NBA game at Spectrum Center.

▪ This was Stephanie Ready’s last game as part of the Hornets’ television team. . She is moving on to another, yet unannounced, broadcasting position. Ready has been part of telecasts since the NBA returned to Charlotte in 2004.

They said it

“I feel his support every single day. Through wins, through losses, through ups, through downs he’s with us.” – Hornets coach James Borrego on his relationship with general manager Mitch Kupchak.

“We have to show him (a variety of) bodies.” – Borego pre-game on dealing with James’ wide skill set.

“I’m surprised at a lot of these guys near my age are still playing....This is a young man’s game.” – Lakers coach Luke Walton on 36-year-old Tony Parker’s longevity.

Report card

F OFFENSE: Other than Jeremy Lamb, the starters were all but invisible offensively. And the turnovers were problematic for the second straight game

D DEFENSE: The turnovers contributed to the ease with which the Lakers scored, but there were so many open 3-point looks.

D COACHING: They have three days before the next game, and there is plenty to correct.

This story was originally published December 15, 2018 at 9:38 PM with the headline "Lakers, LeBron James blow out Hornets in brutal shooting night for Kemba Walker."