At one point Wednesday night, the Lakers might’ve thought they were going to beat the Thunder. They were up 44-43 with four minutes left in the second quarter, Kobe Bryant has been resurgent lately, and he was even dunking the ball for just the second time all season:


That 44-43 lead, well, that would be the high water mark. Over the next 9:04, spanning the end of the second quarter and almost half of the third, the Thunder outscored the Lakers 36 to two. When the dust finally settled, a one point lead had turned into a 33-point deficit. The Thunder shot 14-19 and made six free throws, while the Lakers went an unfathomable 1-15, contributing to a 36 percent shooting night. To me, this was the bleakest stretch:


The beginning of the third quarter leading to a Lakers timeout is pretty bad too, though:

The good news for the Lakers? They’re improving! Last week they lost to the Thunder by 40; tonight they only lost by 35, 120-85.

Photo via Getty

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