LOS ANGELES -- The Lakers haven’t been on a skid like this in nearly two decades.
They lost their ninth consecutive game Tuesday, blowing a 19-point lead before falling 98-92 to the Washington Wizards at Staples Center. Their record dropped to 12-34.
It marks the Lakers’ longest such streak since they lost 10 straight in April 1994. The Lakers’ coach then? Magic Johnson.
Turning point: The Lakers held an 11-point halftime lead but were outscored by 10 in the third quarter. Then the Wizards just leaned on their superior talent to carry them home in the fourth. Though the Lakers led big early, it never really felt like they had the horses to bring home a win.
Player of the game: John Wall had a sneaky quiet all-around game, finishing with 21 points, 13 assists and 9 rebounds. The Wizards star point guard made 8 of 12 shots.
Rookie impact: Lakers first-year guard Jordan Clarkson played with a lot of confidence and had his best game yet, scoring a career-high 18 points on 8-of-18 shooting.
Top Lakers scorer: Wayne Ellington started at shooting guard -- a position that will be open the rest of the season with Kobe Bryant sidelined -- and picked up the scoring slack by pouring in a career-high 28 points.
Swaggy P update: Nick Young missed the game with a sprained right ankle that he suffered in Monday's practice. Lakers coach Byron Scott said Young was slated to get some tests done on that ankle, but Scott already had doubts Young will be ready to play Thursday as the Lakers host the Chicago Bulls at Staples Center.
High praise: Wizards coach Randy Wittman joined the ever-growing list of those around the league to praise Bryant, who is expected to miss the rest of the season with a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. “Players like him come around once in a lifetime,” Wittman said. “You’re not going to see another one probably like him, as gifted as he was, as competitive as he is, to do the things he’s doing. What he did this year coming off the injuries that he had was remarkable. You cherish players like him, even as an opposing coach.”
Metta! Former Laker Metta World Peace was in the building and spent much of the first half shaking hands and giving hugs to pretty much everyone in sight, including Jeanie Buss. He also received some hearty cheers from Lakers fans when he was shown on the JumboTron.