PORTLAND, Ore. — After losing 45-13 to the Trail Blazers in the second quarter, his team trailed by 25 points at halftime. I have summarized the comments briefly.
Dennis Schroeder said after the Lakers’ 121-112 come-from-behind victory on Sunday, “Durbin got out of here and said, ‘Guys, how about this?'”
Hamm’s exit prompted Lakers guard Patrick Beverley to share a message that resonated with the group at an impromptu players’ meeting.
“I told the players, ‘Get your swag up,'” said Beverly, who posted a plus-27 plus-minus in 29 minutes in the game. “Please realize that you are lucky to be playing a game that gives you the stability to take care of your family, and that you can live the lifestyle that many dream of, the lucky lifestyle.
“So regardless of what’s going on, enjoy this —. Stay flashy. That was my message and we came out and responded.”
The Blazers outscored the Lakers by 32 points in the second quarter, the widest margin of any NBA team in any quarter this season. What happened next was him one of the biggest turning points in Lakers franchise history. Dallas in December 2002 he overcame the second-largest halftime deficit to win, behind only his 28-point comeback against the Mavericks.
Beverley, who was whistled for a technical foul in the second quarter for joking Blazers star Damien Lillard while he was at the free-throw line, continued to speak on the court in the second half, furiously I backed it up with a nice on-ball defense.
“I think it’s exciting,” Hamm said of Beverly. And he’s consistent in that regard, trying to provide a spark.
“We’ve done a good job bringing him here as the Lakers’ leading defensive agitator.
LA beat Portland 75-41 after halftime, and when the comeback seemed almost complete, Beverly mocked Lillard’s signature “dametime” wrist tap and began waving his wrist and hitting. He broke down and pretended to take it off and put it in his pocket.
“I mean, it’s a PB,” Schroeder said with a laugh when asked about the Beverly watch antics. “That’s what he does. He lives for the moment and he’s done it his whole career, so you can’t blame him.”
LA shot 56.5% in the second half, holding the Blazers to 30.8%.
Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said of the shift in energy in the third quarter, “They started smelling blood and LeBron kept attacking. They kept attacking.” “We were a little vulnerable, but it became the game.”
James scored 20 of his 37 points in the second half, entering and finishing the lane again and again.
“You either go out and lie down and prepare for the next game, or you see what happens in the third quarter and make it a game,” James said. “And for us as competitors this year, and for our team and our composition, we are not a laydown team. It is not the composition of our club.”
