Pelicans 113, Lakers 92: Back on losing track

LOS ANGELES -- A loss -- just what the Los Angeles Lakers needed. ... No, really.
They’ve done enough damage to their draft lottery hopes in the past two weeks with a pair of wins over the lowly Philadelphia 76ers, but the Lakers got back in the loss column Wednesday by dropping a 113-92 decision to the New Orleans Pelicans at Staples Center.
The 20-54 Lakers have the league’s fourth-worst record, and if they finish the season in that spot, they’ll have an 82.8 percent chance of retaining their top-five protected 2015 first-round pick, which they'd otherwise forfeit to the 76ers.
But if the Lakers fall to the fifth-worst record, those odds take a steep drop to 55.4 percent.
Could the Lakers end up there? It’s possible. Their .270 winning percentage isn't all that better than the Orlando Magic (.293), who currently occupy that fifth spot.
The point is, with eight games remaining in this regular season, every loss matters that much more for the Lakers.
And it’s no secret that Lakers fans are watching the scoreboard pretty closely right now. They know the stakes, and Lakers coach Byron Scott has heard from them often.
“It’s hard to tell somebody to go in and lose that job or don’t do well, don’t do your best,” Scott said before the game. “That’s basically what our fans are telling our players. ‘Don’t go out there and play as hard as you can.’
Scott added, “I think most fans have to put themselves in that position as well and think about our players, and what would they do at their job if they were just going in every day not to do their very best. They probably wouldn’t have a job. So it’s pretty simple.”
Oh, and the Lakers are one loss from tying their most losses in franchise history, a mark they set last season.
Turning point: It was close early on ... until the Pelicans outscored the Lakers 31-18 in the second quarter. It was over after that, with the Pelicans leading by as much as 25.
Player of the game: The Pelicans had six players in double figures, but the player who stood out the most was -- as usual -- Anthony Davis. The star center finished with 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 blocks and a steal. He didn’t seem to be trying all that hard, either.
Top Lakers player: The last Lakers rookie to record a triple-double was this fellow named Magic Johnson, who nabbed seven of them during the 1979-80 season. But Jordan Clarkson nearly became the first Lakers rookie to pull off that feat since. He finished with a team-high 18 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds in 30 minutes.
Clarkson, a second-round pick, was well on his way to a triple-double in the first quarter, when he posted 11 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds. His night was a bit quieter from that point on.
Notes: Lakers rookie center Tarik Black posted a career-high 16 points, hitting 8-of-10 from the field in 28 minutes. ... After missing 18 games because of an MCL sprain in his right knee, Ryan Anderson returned for the Pelicans, finishing with 17 points on 5-of-11 shooting off the bench.