In the 17th straight game without LeBron James, the Lakers suffered yet another loss, this time to the East's fourth-best team in the Philadelphia 76ers.
In 36 minutes, the reigning rookie of the year, Ben Simmons stuffed the stat sheet for the visitors - 19 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals on 9-of-18 shooting, while Jimmy Butler did more of the same, posting 20 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, and 5 steals on an efficent 7-of-9 from the field.
#HereTheyCome @JimmyButler (20p/5r/6a) & @BenSimmons25 (19p/8r/6a) fill up the box score in the @sixers road victory! pic.twitter.com/iMST089htL
— NBA (@NBA) January 30, 2019
While Joel Embiid didn't dominate the Lakers in Los Angeles like last time (46 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 7 blocks), his stat line in Wednesday's contest didn't disappoint either -
28 PTS. 11 REB. 6 AST.
— NBA (@NBA) January 30, 2019
The BEST of @JoelEmbiid in the @sixers win in LA! #HereTheyCome pic.twitter.com/ILmikY3ZpS
Philly's Big 3 combined to help them bounce back from a 16-point loss at Denver and tie them with the Indiana Pacers for the third-seed in the Eastern Conference.
For the Lakers, Brandon Ingram put on a show with a career-high 36 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists on 16-of-20 shooting, but it wasn't enough for the shorthanded Lakers. Apart from LeBron, the team was also missing key starters in Lonzo Ball (ankle) and Kyle Kuzma (hip).
The Lakers' struggles shooting the three (7-of-23) combined with their 21 turnovers made life difficult on their home floor. Those 21 turnovers led to 34 points for Philadelphia.
Losing by 16 pts (105-121) to the top-heavy Philadelphia 76ers, the Lakers have now slipped to a record 6-11 without the four-time league MVP.
This 76ers contest in Los Angeles was the last for the Lakers as they now head-off for a huge 13-day, six-game road trip (the first of which is in LA for a Clippers home game). Meanwhile, the 76ers will now travel to Oakland to face the Golden State Warriors on Friday for the third game of their four-game road trip.