James came off the bench to lead the Lakers with 19 points, but lack of defense made the difference in a loss that dropped them to ninth in the West.
LOS ANGELES — Coming off the bench for just the second time in his career, LeBron James still made his check-in a spectacle.
The Lakers have been hot over the last month and a half, and James’ arrival after a 13-game layoff due to injury seemed like it might ramp up that momentum even more. But on Sunday, the franchise star’s return could not cure all that ails the Lakers , who were outplayed nearly start to finish in a 118-108 defeat to the Chicago Bulls .
But ultimately, a lack of defensive intensity — the very thing that has driven the team’s turnaround after the trade deadline, was the key factor more than any individual player. The Lakers have boasted the league’s third-best defensive rating since the All-Star break , which helped them go 8-5 without James. But they couldn’t stay in front of Zach LaVine’s weaving drives or keep a lid on Chicago’s bench shooters, and they were bothered in the paint and on the glass by the Bulls’ physicality.
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