Lakers news: JaVale McGee thinks LA may have underestimated Knicks

Los Angeles Lakers big man JaVale McGee said that L.A. probably underestimated the lowly New York Knicks coming into the contest.

On Friday night, the New York Knicks scored an upset victory in Staples Center against the LeBron James-less Los Angeles Lakers. Following his team's 119-112 defeat, Lakers big man JaVale McGee said that L.A. probably underestimated the lowly Knicks coming into the contest.

While he may not have made a straightforward confession, McGee did imply that the Lakers might be guilty of taking it a bit too easy against the 10-29 Knicks.

JaVale McGee on if they underestimated the #Knicks: "It's definitely possible. That's what happens when you play against teams that don't have good records, but we didn't go into this game like that. We knew they played hard." #Lakers

— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) January 5, 2019

JaVale McGee went on to say, however, that the Lakers are fully aware of the elite level of competition in the NBA. Nonetheless, he claims that the Lakers were caught off guard by the Knicks' three-point shooting on the evening.

JaVale McGee on #Knicks: "They're an #NBA team; any NBA team can beat anybody, so we didn't take them for granted. But, truthfully, I don't think we thought they would come out as hot from 3, if anything." #Lakers

— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) January 5, 2019

The Knicks were not exactly piping hot from rainbow territory in this one, as the team collectively went 11-of-37 from distance. As a matter of fact, the Lakers also hit the exact same number of treys in the same number of attempts. Both teams shot exactly 29.7 percent from three-point territory on the evening.

For his part, JaVale McGee had a good outing against the Knicks, scoring 18 points on 9-of-14 shooting. The 30-year-old also grabbed nine rebounds and added an assist and a block in 25 minutes of action.

The Lakers have been struggling of late, suffering defeat in four of their last six matches since losing LeBron on Christmas Day against the Warriors. According to a recent report, James is expected to miss at least another week due to a groin injury. McGee and co. will need to hold the fort until LeBron is able to take the court again.