While they have been without forward Jarred Vanderbilt and big man Christian Wood in each of their games (starting frontcourt players Anthony Davis and Rui Hachimura also didn't play on Wednesday), a team never wants to lose because it fell short in the effort category.

The Lakers gave up 130-plus points twice on the trip. Three of their four losses were by double digits. They’ve slipped to 28th in defensive rating, allowing 118.8 points per 100 possessions and undermining their eighth-ranked offense.