The Lakers lost 114-109 to the Knicks on Monday night, the same night they hoisted their banner for winning the In-Season Tournament. They struggled to find a cohesive offensive flow and failed to produce the crucial defensive stops they required. The Lakers are now 15-12 on the season with their third defeat in their last four games following their victory against the Pacers in the IST final.

LeBron James, Austin Reaves, and Anthony Davis each scored a respectable 32, 25 and 20 points, respectively, but the Lakers as a team only made 42.4% of their field goals overall, including 50% (26-52) in the paint. In addition, even though the team outscored their opponents 13 to 10, the Lakers struggled mightily from the free throw line, making only two of their nine attempts, many of which were momentum shots that could have changed the game in the Lakers’ favour if they had fallen.

Conversely, the Knicks capitalised on their advantages by purposefully launching an offensive paint onslaught and effectively wiping out the glass on both ends of the floor. Julius Randle was crucial on both ends, making good plays in the paint where he connected on clean and contested looks. In all, he made 12 of his 22 shots, 11 of which were in the paint, scoring 27 points and grabbing 14 rebounds.

Jalen Brunson, who accompanied Randle with a paint-centric approach, produced most of his damage in the paint while making three of his six attempts from beyond the arc. The remaining seven of his made baskets came in and around the restricted area. Using his agility and shiftiness with the ball to break free and get into the key, where he made floaters and runners before the defence could get there in time to change the shot, Brunson led the Knicks with 29 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter.

The Lakers performed admirably to keep the game close for the majority of the evening, even seizing the lead in the third quarter, despite the Knicks dominating the paint offensively and winning the fight on the boards. LeBron entered the game in the third quarter with a sharpness and attention on attacking, which allowed the Lakers to start taking control of the game after Anthony Davis engineered a late run to cap the first half that took them into the interval with a one-point lead.

Overall, Davis was outstanding, demonstrating his versatility as a three-level scorer and displaying ease with his jump jumper. Whether he was creating his own shot off the dribble or out of the post, the Knicks had few answers for his skill. In addition to his efficiency as a finisher via the Lakers pick-and-roll assault, Davis was the only player to play a significant amount of time and shoot over 50%, making 14 of his 22 shots. He also gave the backboards his all, grabbing 14 rebounds in total.

Davis tried his hardest to elevate the Lakers, but the Knicks were just too strong. The Knicks’ advantage was reestablished at 10 points at the beginning of the fourth quarter thanks to Emmanuel Quickley’s rapid bench unit outburst, which allowed LeBron to take the initiative after halftime and seal the third quarter. The Lakers attempted to win the game on multiple occasions, but the Knicks were always ready with a countermove to surprise the home team and win the game in the end.

After that, the Lakers will go on a three-game road trip, starting on Wednesday night in Chicago when they play the Bulls. Therefore, the Lakers must play on the road before going home for Christmas if they are to turn things around.