Kyle Kuzma on Lakers loss: 'This is pretty embarrassing'

Los Angeles Lakers rookie Kyle Kuzma called out his teammates after they got routed 133-96 by the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Staples Center on Wednesday evening (Thursday AEDT). The Lakers (11-26) lost their eighth straight game and slipped to the last place in the Western Conference standings.

"We gave up. You could see, they got basket after basket, we had no resistance on them on the defensive end and offensive end. When things got tough, we tried to do it individually, and you can't do that in this league. They took a little lead and we just went to being selfish on the floor. We didn't compete on defense. They killed us. ... To lose by (nearly) 40, it is pretty embarrassing to be out there," Kuzma, who leads the Lakers in scoring with 17.5 points per game, said.

The game was hyped as an audition for the Lakers to recruit Thunder star Paul George to Los Angeles. George, an unrestricted free agent in July, has been linked strongly with the Lakers. However, Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and the other young Lakers put forward a mediocre performance in George's visit to the Staples Center.

Paul George to Lakers? Thunder star praises young team

Despite the horrible performance, George praised the Lakers' young core. "The best thing is they have young guys that are potentially going to be big names in this league," George said. "They just got to continue to keep working."

Meanwhile, Lakers coach Luke Walton cited injuries as the primary reason for the Lakers' slump. "I think injuries have a little bit to do with it. This is something we will fix. We are not going to start getting blown out now. We are not going to start feeling sorry for ourselves. We are going to get back in the gym, go to work, show film. I believe in the character of our team. We will fix it."

The young Lakers will get three more attempts to impress Paul George. After the Thunder host the Lakers on Jan. 17 and Feb. 4, Russell Westbrook & Co. will return to the Staples Center on Feb. 8. Will Paul George to Lakers become a reality in July?