LeBron: Not going to ‘harp’ after more poor Lakers shooting

LOS ANGELES — The Lakers can’t hit outside shots. That much is clear after L.A. shot 9-for-45 from 3 in Thursday night’s 103-97 loss to the Clippers. That total somehow managed to be even worse than the Lakers’ 10-for-40 clip from deep in their opening-night loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Yet while LeBron James bluntly lamented his team’s lack of “lasers” on the roster after the Warriors game, he did not add to that refrain Thursday, even after the Lakers went 0-for-9 on 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.

“I’m definitely not going to sit here and harp on what we can’t do every single game,” James said when asked about his team’s mounting misses. “That’s not a leader. What I know we can do? We can defend our ass off. We did that tonight, which gave us an opportunity to win and we just couldn’t make it happen. But, I’m OK with that.”

The Lakers held the Clippers — one of the oddsmakers’ favorites to win the NBA title — to just 103 points and 80 total shots, with the Lakers’ on-ball pressure helping force the Clippers into 22 turnovers.

James assured reporters that L.A.’s shooting would improve but added that it will not be the winning formula the team leans on.

“If we’re reliant on [sufficient outside shooting] every single game, then we’re in trouble,” James said. “So I’m not worried about that or thinking about that. It’s how hard we play, how aggressive we play, how determined we are to go out and compete every night. And we got to defend. When we defend, we’re going to give ourselves a good chance to win.”

There was an acknowledgement throughout the team that the Lakers shot themselves in the foot by being so off, but they cannot shy away from open looks.

“Don’t let missed shots take away your confidence,” said Anthony Davis, who was 2-for-4 from 3 while the rest of L.A.’s starters were 5-for-29. “Keep shooting it, be confident in your shot. And they’re going to fall. Ain’t nothing you can do but keep shooting.”

Coach Darvin Ham said the Lakers’ analytics department determined the team had more quality shot attempts by their metrics than any of the other three teams that played on opening night, adding to his belief that they are the shots his team is supposed to take.

Ham was asked after the game whether the shots might be open because opposing defenses are packing the lane to cut off driving opportunities and daring the Lakers to shoot.

“I guess you could say that,” Ham said. “But, I mean, we just have to take care of our business. That’s the way that we want to play. If they want to give us those shots, then we’ll accept it wholeheartedly. I mean, that’s the way we want to play. We want to play fast, physical and free.

“And, again, we see these guys making shots in practice and shootaround. They got to do it on the game floor. It’s as simple as that.”

Lakers guard Russell Westbrook had a particularly difficult shooting night Thursday, going 0-for-11 overall (including 0-for-6 from 3), but even his night was defended by James.

“Just flush it down the toilet and get ready for Sunday,” James said, when asked whether he had any advice for Westbrook. “He’s a veteran. We’ve all had bad shooting nights. I’ve had bad shooting nights. Everybody in this league has had bad shooting nights. Who cares? I thought he played a great game. Defensively he was in tune. He was locked in. He pushed the tempo. He just didn’t make any shots, and that’s OK.”

Westbrook, who finished with five steals, four assists and just one turnover aside from the missed shots, also looked ahead to the next game against the Portland Trail Blazers when asked to assess his performance.

“Solid,” he said of his night. “Played hard. All you can ask for. Go on to the next one.”

Kawhi Leonard off bench in LA Clippers’ win over Lakers

LOS ANGELES — After missing all of last season, Kawhi Leonard opted to wait a little longer before making his much-anticipated return for the LA Clippers.

For the first time with the team, Leonard decided not to start, looking to maximize his limited minutes. He ended up finishing the game as the Clippers beat the Los Angeles Lakers once again. Leonard scored 14 points, including a 21-foot jumper with 52.3 seconds remaining to help seal a 103-97 win at Crypto.com Arena.

The Clippers beat their hallway rival for the eighth straight time despite their franchise player not checking into the game until the 6:25 mark in the second quarter and playing three stints that totaled 21 minutes.

“It was long,” Leonard said of his wait to come into the game. “But I waited 82 games last year, so I didn’t think 15 minutes would be that long.”

In his first game back since tearing his right ACL in Game 4 of the second round against the Utah Jazz on June 14, 2021, Leonard was a reserve for the first time since November 2013, when he was with the San Antonio Spurs.

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Leonard said he made the decision to not start after going over data and running simulations in practice with him starting and subbing in. Leonard and the Clippers’ goal, with the team expected to contend for a championship, is for him to stay healthy and be at his strongest for the postseason. They want to maximize his minutes as he works his way back, and have him play those minutes during the most impactful stretches and finish the game.

“One scenario with me starting, I would have been sitting like 35 minutes real time,” Leonard said of starting and still being able to finish the game. “That’s way too long. So I just thought this was the best situation. But we’ll see how it goes moving forward.”

“One scenario with me starting, I would have been sitting like 35 minutes real time,” Leonard said of starting and still being able to finish the game. “That’s way too long. So I just thought this was the best situation. But we’ll see how it goes moving forward.”

“First [Leonard] got the rebound, went coast-to-coast and hit his little patented fadeaway,” said John Wall, who hit 7 of 15 shots and scored 15 points in 24 minutes in his first game since April 23, 2021. “It’s all about rhythm and pace for him.

“He’s a guy that’s like a machine, and he works on his stuff, he sticks with what he wants to. And he basically treats it like a workout. Like he doesn’t see anybody in front of him. It’s all about him missing or making a shot.”

Leonard didn’t have his rhythm from 3-point range, where he shot 1-for-4. But he made some pivotal plays, drawing a charge off LeBron James late in the fourth and knocking in that jumper with under a minute to go to give the Clippers a six-point cushion after the Lakers erased a 15-point second-half deficit.

“I did this before,” Leonard said of coming off the bench. “This is how I started my career. That’s how I approached it mentally. Act like I was in foul trouble, and once I check in in the second quarter, it’s time to play basketball.”

Leonard acknowledged that he likely will not play in at least one of this weekend’s back-to-back games at Sacramento and then at home against Phoenix.

“You gotta gradually play minutes in order to get the ACL strong,” Leonard said. “Once you start playing 38 minutes first game, it could easily weaken up, but I’m listening to the doctor with that.

“It’s a long season. We wanna get in the playoffs and want me to play in the playoffs.”

As for how long he plans on coming off the bench, Leonard said he likely needs to see his minutes increase back to around the 34.1 minutes he averaged in 2020-21.

“It’s all about how my knee responds,” Leonard said. “We’ll see how it feels tomorrow and then gradually go as time goes forward and I’ll start adding minutes, and once I’m ready to play 35 minutes — I think I played 33 minutes when I was healthy — that’s probably when you’ll see me starting.”

Daughters of Jayson Williams denounce his St. John’s HOF nod

The daughters of former NBA All-Star Jayson Williams have denounced St. John’s for its decision to induct their father into the school’s athletics hall of fame because of accusations of neglect in their lives following his role in the 2002 fatal shooting of a limousine driver.

Tryumph and Whizdom Williams wrote open letters that they planned to send to St. John’s that said the school should be ashamed for his induction into the class during Saturday’s homecoming weekend.

The 54-year-old Williams served more than a year in prison for the accidental shotgun death of chauffeur Costas Christofi in his New Jersey mansion.

The sisters each accused Williams of neglect and emotional and verbal abuse and said the power forward, who once signed a six-year, $86 million deal with the New Jersey Nets, failed to provide adequate financial support.

The sisters each accused Williams of neglect and emotional and verbal abuse and said the power forward, who once signed a six-year, $86 million deal with the New Jersey Nets, failed to provide adequate financial support.

“Why are you being honored and inducted into the hall of fame when I’ve always had to earn my survival, let alone my success, in spite of you? St. John’s University — you should be ashamed of yourself,” she wrote.

Whizdom J Williams, an 18-year-old student at the Fashion Institute of Technology, accused her father of being an alcoholic and “a deadbeat father who lacks any sense of remorse.”

St. John’s and Williams did not immediately return requests for comment.

Williams killed Christofi with a 12-gauge shotgun while showing it to friends, having failed to check the weapon’s safety mechanism before snapping the gun closed. Williams then wiped down the weapon and placed it in the chauffeur’s hands, stripped off his own clothes, handed them to a friend and jumped into his pool, according to testimony. Williams’ lawyers maintained that the shooting was an accident and that his actions were driven by panic.

He made a tearful apology to the victim’s family when he was sentenced for the shooting in 2010. Williams, divorced from his daughters’ mother, Tanya, had paid Christofi’s family more than $2 million in 2003 to settle a wrongful death lawsuit.

Williams has since founded the addiction rehabilitation program the Rebound Institute in Florida, which has been promoted by St. John’s as a success story.

But his daughters wrote that Williams never made amends with them.

“I knew that I couldn’t change who my father was or the way he viewed and treated me,” Whizdom wrote. “I knew that the contrition and apologies were never coming.”

She also wrote a poem about her father and dedicated it: “To the weakest man I know, Jayson.”

Williams averaged 7.3 points and 7.5 rebounds over nine seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers and Nets. The 6-foot-10 Williams was among the NBA’s best rebounders when leg injuries led to his retirement from the Nets in 2000.

He played three seasons at St. John’s under Hall of Fame coach Lou Carnesecca. A co-captain in 1989-90, Williams was part of a St. John’s team that won 24 games and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. He was the 21st overall pick in the 1990 draft and finished with 3,472 points, 3,584 rebounds and 301 blocks during his pro career.

Williams is scheduled to join a seven-person class at St. John’s induction ceremony that also includes 2016 Olympic high jumper Priscilla Frederick and 2016 Olympic fencing silver medalist Daryl Homer.

Darvin Ham: Have ‘understanding’ with Russell Westbrook after remarks

LOS ANGELES — Lakers coach Darvin Ham says he and Russell Westbrook have “moved on” and have “an understanding” after the point guard suggested Ham’s decision to bring him off the bench in the preseason could have contributed to a minor hamstring injury he suffered.

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Ham, however, pushed back at any insinuation that his rotation in the Lakers’ preseason finale loss to the Sacramento Kings — in which Westbrook played just five minutes off the bench before exiting with the strained left hamstring — had anything to do with the physical setback.

“Let me be clear with this,” Ham said before his team fell to the LA Clippers 103-97 on Thursday night. “The Lakers, myself, my staff, we would in no way, shape or form put a player or an employee in harm’s way. Physically, mentally, spiritually. We don’t stand for that. We’re not about that. That’s not who we are.”

Following the Lakers’ 123-109 season-opening loss to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, Westbrook said he “absolutely” believes that coming off the bench against Sacramento could have caused the injury.

“I’ve been doing the same thing for 14 years straight,” he said, referring to starting 1,005 out of 1,022 games in his career. “Honestly, I didn’t even know what to do pregame. Being honest, I was trying to figure out how to stay warm and loose. … That’s something I just wasn’t accustomed to.”

Ham said the two shared a “brief discussion” about the remarks. Ham went back to Westbrook in the starting lineup against the Warriors and again against the Clippers.

“We moved on, we got an understanding,” Ham said. “As the coach of this team, we’re going to do what’s best for our team to be as successful as it can be. And I’ll just leave it at that.”

Ham said he understands “respect” and “routine” are important to the former league MVP but acknowledged the team-centric goals he will require Westbrook to meet.

“He’s been around a long time. He’s been a high-level player for a very long time. So, I know what that’s about and how that is,” Ham said. “But on the other hand, you have to be prepared to do whatever your team needs you to do. And that’s called being a professional. So, however we choose to use him, there has to be a willingness there to sacrifice for your teammates and overall good of the team if that course of action is going to lead to success.”

Westbrook played 31 minutes against Golden State and finished with 19 points on 7-for-12 shooting, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 4 turnovers. He then played 27 minutes with 2 points on 0-for-11 shooting, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals and 1 turnover against the Clippers.

Ham said he had a “good plan in place” for Westbrook’s role moving forward, but added, “based on performance, minutes can go up, minutes can go down.”

Ham also said he didn’t have a problem with Westbrook saying what he said to reporters after the Warriors game, or with LeBron James’ blunt assessment that “we’re not a team that’s constructed of great shooting” — even if their comments were interpreted as critiques of the coaching staff and front office.

“It’s a grown man’s league,” Ham said. “Things are going to be said whether it’s directed at someone or not. I handle it in stride. I’ve been around this thing for 26 years. I’ve been on quiet teams and I’ve been on a couple of loud teams. But I have the utmost respect for those guys. I believe they have the utmost respect for me. There’s nothing taken personal about anything. We address it and we move on.”

‘Workaholic’ James Harden cites gym work for strong start

PHILADELPHIA — James Harden ended last season saying that with a full offseason to work on his game ahead of him, he’d look like a different player this season.

Following a second straight terrific performance to begin the season for the 76ers Thursday night, scoring 31 points to go with eight rebounds and nine assists in a 90-88 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks that dropped Philadelphia to 0-2, Harden said he feels “really good” after being able to get back to being a “workaholic” in the gym this summer.

“I’m a workaholic, so not being able to put the work in like I normally do was frustrating,” Harden said. “This summer, I had that opportunity to, and then even up to this point, I feel really good. So, just continue to put the work in and living with the results, and that’s what I live by.

“A lot of people don’t see the work that I put in. This scoring ability and all of this other stuff doesn’t come without work. So as much as people want to talk about all of this other stuff that doesn’t really matter, I’m a workaholic and I love to be in the gym and play basketball. So I’ll continue to do that.

“But for me, it’s not even about the individual. Individual [play] is great, and I’ll do whatever it takes for the betterment of this team, but all of us need to be playing at a high level and that’s a part of my job.”

“But for me, it’s not even about the individual. Individual [play] is great, and I’ll do whatever it takes for the betterment of this team, but all of us need to be playing at a high level and that’s a part of my job.”

Still, Harden’s performance wasn’t enough for the 76ers. His potential go-ahead jumper in the final seconds over one of the league’s best defensive guards, Jrue Holiday, was off-line, with Harden later saying it was a good look, and not a great one.

“Could have took my time a little bit more,” he said. “But I’ll take it.”

The 76ers found themselves in a position to win the game at all thanks to the work the small-ball lineup of Harden, De’Anthony Melton, Danuel House, Tobias Harris and P.J. Tucker did earlier in the fourth quarter, erasing a 13-point Bucks lead to drag Philadelphia back into the game.

But the Bucks wound up surviving thanks to Grayson Allen kicking out to a wide-open Wes Matthews — after Harris left him to help on Allen’s drive — with 24.7 seconds to go for what turned into the game-winning shot.

“It was a mental mistake,” Harris said. “I thought Grayson Allen had a good cut into the lane, but with that time and score, no 3s at that period in time, so that’s on me.”

Eventually, though, 76ers coach Doc Rivers went back to superstar center Joel Embiid, who checked back into the game with a little over five minutes remaining. It was a rough night for Embiid, who had 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists and a blocked shot but was 6-for-21 from the field — including 0-for-7 in the second half — and committed four turnovers.

Embiid declined to speak to reporters afterward.

“I don’t know if the Bucks did anything [against him],” Rivers said. “He just didn’t have a great game. He’s human. He didn’t have one of his better games. He did a lot of other things for us.”

Harden, on the other hand, had a strong game for a second straight time to open the season. He had 35 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists Tuesday in the loss in Boston in Philadelphia’s season opener, and became the third player in 76ers history — joining Hall of Famers Wilt Chamberlain and Allen Iverson — to score at least 30 points in his first two games to begin a season, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.

After becoming a superstar with the Houston Rockets by making layups, 3-pointers and free throws, Harden’s success Thursday came in a surprising way: by living in the midrange.

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His seven made midrange jumpers were a career high, per ESPN Stats & Information. They were also a third of the 21 he made all of last season, when he had only one game in which he made more than one midrange jumper.

“I’ve been working on my game this summer, so I just took what the defense gave me,” Harden said. “I had a couple 3s that I missed, but you can’t control it. You put the work in and you live with the results. Tonight, they gave me midrange shots and I lived with the results.”

“I’ve been working on my game this summer, so I just took what the defense gave me,” Harden said. “I had a couple 3s that I missed, but you can’t control it. You put the work in and you live with the results. Tonight, they gave me midrange shots and I lived with the results.”

“I definitely want to be more aggressive,” Antetokounmpo said after admitting he could take his game another “step” after finishing with 21 points, 13 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 blocked shots. “But at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. I didn’t have to be aggressive for 48 minutes to win the game today. I came into this season with the mindset to trust my teammates and share the ball and sacrifice as much as I have to sacrifice in order to get everybody involved and get everybody where they need to be, and if that helps me win games, I’m the first guy that’s going to do that.”