LeBron James admitted the Lakers haven't been good enough at home and stressed they need to "close quarters better" to hold leads late in games.
Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James missed the game-winner in Tuesday's 110-109 home loss to the Orlando Magic.
The Lakers let double-digit leads slip away twice in the game: 13 points in the first half and 12 in the second.
When asked what the team needs to do to avoid squandering leads late in the season, LeBron was straightforward: "Close quarters. We just gotta close quarters better."
The loss capped a 4-4 homestand over the past three weeks.
"I don't know. Shit, I don't even know what today was when I woke up. You ask me about the last three weeks?" LeBron responded.
"I don't know. We just haven't been good enough," James added, reflecting on the Lakers' struggles at home this season.
Coach JJ Redick kept it brief, too: "We're a work in progress."
Credit AP - Scanpix
The season is in its most intense stretch, leaving little time to dwell on past games.
"It's games just bang, bang, bang, bang. You don't have much time to really think," LeBron said. "We're playing every other day, or it's a back-to-back, so thinking about something that happened three weeks ago in this league, you can't even do it."
With the loss, the Lakers fell to 34-23 on the season, slipping to sixth place in the Western Conference. Los Angeles will look to bounce back Thursday night when it visits the Phoenix Suns.
Subscribe to BN+ and get access to exclusive content.
If you like our content, please click here and add us as your preferred source. It helps us a lot, and we are committed to delivering you the very latest basketball news.