Los Angeles Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball thought he had himself a triple-double against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night, but a stat change took it away from him. Instead of finishing with a triple-double of 20 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, he wound up with 20 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds.
Lakers teammate JaVale McGee isn't sure how this happened:
Stat corrections aren't all that rare, but McGee is definitely correct that Ball has been stepping up lately. After a November in which he really struggled offensively, Ball is putting up 11.8 points, 5.8 assists and 4.9 rebounds per game in December on better shooting percentages.
Ball followed up his near-triple-double with 19 points, six assists and five rebounds. Unfortunately, the Lakers lost a second consecutive game with LeBron James and Rajon Rondo out of the lineup, falling 118-107 to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Rondo is going to miss another month or so after getting another hand surgery, while it's unclear how long LeBron will be out with his groin injury. Either way, the Lakers are going to need Ball to continue producing like he has been of late.
Los Angeles is currently 20-16 on the season after the two straight losses, good for sixth in the Western Conference. The Lakers face the Kings again Sunday night, and McGee might be back in the lineup after sitting out seven straight games with an illness.
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