Tag Archives: blowout

Business

Exxon, Chevron post blowout earnings, oil majors bet on buybacks

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  • High prices, margins lift majors to best quarters in history
  • Exxon earnings surpass previous record set in 2012

July 29 (Reuters) – The two largest U.S. oil companies, Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) and Chevron Corp (CVX.N), posted record revenue on Friday, bolstered by surging crude oil and natural gas prices and following similar results for European majors a day earlier.

The U.S. pair, along with UK-based Shell (SHEL.L) and France’s TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA), combined to earn nearly $51 billion in the most recent quarter, almost double what the group brought in for the year-ago period.

Exxon outpaced its rivals with a $17.9 billion quarterly profit, the most for any international oil major in history.

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Chevron, Shell and Total ran to catch up with Exxon’s aggressive buyback program, which was kept unaltered.

The four returned a total of $23 billion to shareholders in the quarter, capitalizing on high margins derived from selling oil and gas. The fifth major, BP Plc (BP.L), reports next week. read more

The companies posted strong results in their production units, helped by the surge in benchmark Brent crude oil futures , which averaged around $114 a barrel in the quarter.

High crude oil prices can cut into margins for integrated oil majors, as they also bear the cost of crude used for refined products. However, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and numerous shutdowns of refineries worldwide in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, refining margins exploded in the second quarter, outpacing the gains in crude and adding to earnings.

“The strong second-quarter results reflect a tight global market environment, where demand has recovered to near pre-pandemic levels and supply has attritted,” said Exxon Chief Executive Darren Woods, in a call with analysts. “Growing supply will not happen overnight.”

A combination of file photos shows the logos of five of the largest publicly traded oil companies; BP, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell, and Total. REUTERS/File Photo

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The results from the majors are sure to draw fire from politicians and consumer advocates who say the oil companies are capitalizing on a global supply shortage to fatten profits and gouge consumers. U.S. President Joe Biden last month said Exxon and others were making “more money than God” at a time when consumer fuel prices surged to records. read more

Earlier this month, Britain passed a 25% windfall tax on oil and gas producers in the North Sea. U.S. lawmakers have discussed a similar idea, though it faces long odds in Congress. read more

A windfall tax does not provide “incentive for increased production, which is really what the world needs today,” said Exxon Chief Financial Officer Kathryn Mikells, in an interview with Reuters.

The companies say they are merely meeting consumer demand, and that prices are a function of global supply issues and lack of investment. The majors have been disciplined with their capital and are resisting ramping up capital expenditure due to pressure from investors who want better returns and resilience during a down cycle.

“In the short term (cash from oil) goes to the balance sheet. There’s no nowhere else for it to go,” Chevron CFO Pierre Breber told Reuters.

Worldwide oil output has been held back by a slow return of barrels to the market from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, including Russia, as well as labor and equipment shortages hampering a swifter increase in supply in places like the United States.

Exxon earlier this year more than doubled its projected buyback program to $30 billion through 2022 and 2023. Shell said it would buy back $6 billion in shares in the current quarter, while Chevron boosted its annual buyback plans to a range of $10 billion to $15 billion, up from $5 billion to $10 billion.

Exxon shares were up 4.5% to $96.87 in afternoon trading. Chevron shares rose more than 8% to $163.68.

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Reporting By Sabrina Valle; writing by David Gaffen; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Marguerita Choy

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Sports

Colorado Avalanche ‘close to perfect’ in Game 2 blowout of Lightning, Jared Bednar says

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DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche walloped the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday to take a commanding 2-0 series lead over the two-time defending Cup champions.

It was a performance so good that even Avalanche coach Jared Bednar had no real notes on how to improve.

“It was certainly as close to perfect of a game as you can get from your players,” Bednar said. “Coming out of Game 1 we were dangerous offensively, but I thought there was another step for our group. We evaluated that, we showed them some things and they did a nice job. And on the defensive side we were way better tonight. It wasn’t even close. I thought we made some big mistakes that led to goals against in Game 1. We got better in those areas, amongst others.”

It’s no small feat to ring up seven goals on an all-world netminder like Andrei Vasilevskiy either. But Colorado had his number from the get-go.

Valeri Nichushkin had the Avalanche rolling early in the first period with a power-play goal, and then Josh Manson followed up with a one-timer past Vasilevskiy off the rush. Andre Burakovsky had Colorado leading 3-0 after the opening 20 minutes. Shot attempts favored Colorado 24-10.

In the second, it was Nichushkin again extending Colorado’s lead, followed by a terrific individual effort by Darren Helm to make it 5-0.

Less than three minutes into the third period Cale Makar added a shorthanded goal to the rout. He added another on the power play to make it 7-0, becoming just the fourth player in NHL history to score shorthanded and on the man advantage in a Cup Final game. The others were Gordie Howe, Glen Wesley and Trevor Linden.

That sort of output would be impressive against any goalie, let alone a Vezina Trophy winner such as Vasilevskiy. Bednar tried to keep the accomplishment in perspective with Colorado’s overall game.

“The number of goals, I don’t get too excited [about]. I just think it’s about the way we played,” he said. “Some days we shoot better than others and we play like we did tonight, and we don’t get seven. Things have to go right. He’s such a good goalie you have to put volume on him. Tonight we shot really well, we created a lot of chances and our guys buried the chances that we got. Guys were feeling it tonight.”

And how. Colorado has consistently preached the importance of not allowing Tampa Bay’s pedigree to affect its approach. In Game 2, the Avalanche won all the battles, were better on special teams (2-for-4 with the extra man, compared with the Lightning’s 0-for-3) and got a strong performance from goaltender Darcy Kuemper in a 16-save shutout.

That was the fewest shots Tampa Bay has generated in a playoff game this year. Not altogether surprising, considering how little possession time — around 28% — the Lightning were able to grab against Colorado’s suffocating attack for which they had no answers.

“[We are] hungry on the defensive side of things, trying to win as many races as we can, as many battles as we can, getting above pucks and making it difficult,” Bednar said. “It’s part of our identity and who we are. Our guys have been doing it all year and they’re continuing to do it. Tonight, they did it better than we usually do.”

As good as Game 2 was, Colorado is mindful it was just one win.

“I feel like we played to our identity to a ‘T’ tonight,” Makar said. “Obviously, we had some good goals. But at the end of the day, we know next game they’re going to bring their best. It’s always the next game that’s the hardest. It was a little bit of a weird one tonight. We’re getting opportunities but guys were able to able to capitalize, so that’s a good part.”

The Avalanche did suffer one setback Saturday, when Burakovsky left the game midway through with an injury. Bednar had no update on his status afterward, saying he still needed to be evaluated. Burakovsky recently missed time in the Western Conference final with a leg ailment but had been an important piece since returning, even scoring the overtime winner in Game 1.

Fortunately for Colorado, it isn’t lacking for depth. And the Avalanche will need everyone on board as the series shifts to Tampa. The Lightning trailed their Eastern Conference final series against New York 2-0 as well, then went home to win a pair and ultimately topped the Rangers in four straight to reach a third consecutive Cup Final.

Everyone knows it isn’t over until it’s over. Bednar said he is confident his team won’t be getting ahead of itself.

“It should be easy for us [going to Tampa],” he said. “We don’t pay attention to the noise outside of our locker room and we don’t pay attention to it when [things being said] are good. Our team just seems to be really focused, dialed in and they’re hungry and they want to win, so they’re playing as hard as they possibly can to reach that [goal].”

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Sports

The Grizzlies played postseason anthem during blowout … and Draymond Green and Stephen Curry loved it

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The Golden State Warriors entered Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals up 3-1, with a chance to end the Memphis Grizzlies’ playoff run.

Ahead of the potential series closer, Stephen Curry gave Kendra Andrews some insight on Golden State’s mentality, saying:

“Whoop that trick! That is our game plan.”

“Whoop That Trick” is a song by Memphis-born rapper Al Kapone. It was also performed by Terrence Howard in the movie “Hustle & Flow.” It has since become the Grizzlies’ unofficial anthem that is played in FedExForum during late-game moments.

Unfortunately for Curry & Co., the game didn’t go as planned. The Grizzlies put up a 134-95 thrashing to avoid elimination.

Memphis hit the ground running, scoring 77 points in the first half, the second-most in a playoff game all-time by any team facing elimination, while the Warriors put up 50.

The home team didn’t slow down in the second half, either. They led by as many as 55 points — the second-largest lead at any point of a playoff game over the last 25 years.

The 39-point win by the Grizzlies is the largest by any team this postseason.

Late in the fourth quarter, the home crowd rejoiced as the song blared throughout the arena. Despite the deficit, Curry and Draymond Green appeared to enjoy the chant.



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Los Angeles Lakers’ Russell Westbrook scoffs at Minnesota Timberwolves’ trash talk after blowout loss

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MINNEAPOLIS — As fans showered the Minnesota Timberwolves starters with thunderous applause when they exited the game late in a blowout win, Karl-Anthony Towns raised one hand and waved toward the Los Angeles Lakers’ bench, gesturing by opening and closing his hand several times.

There was noticeable trash talking during the Timberwolves’ 124-104 win over the Lakers on Wednesday at the Target Center, and the Wolves enjoyed handing the Lakers their third straight loss.

In one particular sequence that went viral, Russell Westbrook air-balled a corner 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 58 seconds left. After Towns rebounded the miss, he looked twice at the path where the air ball took flight with a perplexed look.

“I honestly don’t pay no mind to it,” Westbrook said of the Wolves talking smack. “Maybe the other guys [do]. But they weren’t talking to me. They were talking to individual guys particularly, but the trash talking doesn’t bother me none.

“Nobody over there has done anything in this league that would make me pick my eyes up, like, ‘Oh, they’re talking mess. Let me respond.’ No. It’s fine. They’re good. They won the game. Happy for them. Move onto the next one.”

Earlier in the game, after Patrick Beverley forced a Westbrook turnover, Beverley could be seen plugging his nose as if to say something smelled bad and appeared to mouth the word “trash” twice.

Beverley, who has a history with Westbrook, took to Twitter afterward to respond to Westbrook’s remark that nobody on the Wolves has “done anything in this league.”

“Playoffs every year,” Beverley wrote while retweeting Westbrook’s answer. “2 western conference finals with 2 different Teams individual stats or team stats? I thought it was a team sport??”

Asked about the Wolves’ trash talking, LeBron James said simply, “It’s part of the game.”

The Lakers (29-40) have much bigger concerns than the upstart Wolves, who have won nine of their past 10, talking trash to them. They’ve lost 12 of their past 15 games with their past three losses coming by 29, 11 and 20 points, respectively.

James has looked visibly frustrated at times during the past two losses. He scored 19 points but missed 7 of 8 3-point attempts; the Lakers shot just 22.2% from behind the arc.

While James was encouraged that the Lakers showed more fight from the start in Wednesday’s loss, he admitted that the losing has taken a toll on his patience.

“I think every season for me is all about patience,” James said of the challenges of him leading his team. “And it is no different this year. I think it is just testing my patience a little bit more than any season in the last few years just because of the way we are playing and the losses are coming at a bunch.

“It’s testing your patience and how you can continue to keep the focus out on the floor, figure out ways how you can be better for your teammates and not fall into the notion of a losing mentality. … At the end of the day, I would never, ever put myself in a position where I feel like I am losing, even when I lose a game.”

The Lakers don’t face Minnesota again this regular season. But there is always a possibility they could see each other in the play-in tournament.

“I’ve been in this league long enough to realize it’s is a front-running league,” Lakers guard Wayne Ellington said when asked if he is surprised teams are talking trash to the Lakers. “When you’re up, everything is going great. When you’re down, they’ll kick you.

“So right now, we have been getting kicked and teams have been enjoying it. It all comes back around full circle.”

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Sports

The James Harden paradox: Vanishing act in Sixers’ blowout loss flashes both sides of fascinating career arc

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That was classic James Harden — in both of the ways that paradox tends to play itself out. As a historically great player and, for results beyond individual accolades, as a player worrisome on a historical scale.

In the Philadelphia 76ers debasement at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets in that 129-100 rout Thursday night, Harden flashed both sides of his fascinating career arc, and all the possibilities — very good or very, very disappointing – that have yet to play out.

You know the back story: The trade that sent Harden to Philly for disgruntled star Ben Simmons, plus Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and draft picks, and which supercharged an already fierce Eastern Conference rivalry. 

Though Simmons has yet to play this season, despite the trade he forced, his arrival at his old stomping grounds in street clothes set the tone for an NBA spotlight blazing brightly on hard feeling, swapped stars, former friends turned rivals and all the other soap-opera drama dripping from any contest now featuring these two teams.

Tickets were extravagantly priced. The arena rocked. The entire league watched. And a playoff atmosphere fed a game that had all the markings of a very, very big and important deal.

Enter Harden, and the two sides of his confusing coin. 

Early on, just five minutes into the game, Harden hit a 3-pointer that marked his place as an all-time great scorer. The trey was No. 2,561 in his career, pushing him ahead of Reggie Miller for third all-time in the NBA’s record books.

It was a single dagger in a career made of them, one that has brought Harden an MVP, several scoring titles and the superstar weight one needs if, like the Beard, they plan to throw their weight around time and again to force their way from one team to the next.

He’s an extraordinary offensive talent.

Which is why at-times his tendency — like on this night — to turn in big moments and big games into an offense-killing, victory-deflating, antithesis of his better self makes him also historically disappointing, at least so far. 

Because in the midst of that history Thursday night, Harden laid an egg. A giant one. His brutal box score on the night doesn’t tell the full story: The 11 points on 3-of-17 shooting and box-score plus-minus of -30 looks bad enough. 

The deeper truth is that Harden was even worse in the early stages of the game, when his utter awfulness helped the Nets run out to a 40-23 first-quarter lead. The game ended early, right along with Harden’s self confidence and swagger. This was a battle of wills between two proud teams, and Harden vanished before it could enter its third act.

Harden is great. The record he set speaks to that. Harden is also a great-big postseason question mark — or, less optimistically, a landmine in waiting. 

Take Game 7 of the Western Conference finals back in 2018, when the Houston Rockets, then led by Harden, turned a 3-2 series lead into an ugly defeat. Game 7 is when Harden, who went 12-of-29 and 2-of-13 from three, played with such panic and fear that he spread defeatism through that team the way he had normally dished assists.

On that night, “led” by Harden, Houston at one point missed 27 consecutive three-pointers. Twenty-seven. Houston went home, and the Warriors went on to a title.

Harden supporters will protest: Hater! He’s too good — remarkable, even — for this ridicule.

Harden doubters will say: See! He did it again against the Nets, that pattern of vanishing when moments grow too large.

Both views have truth to them, just as both Hardens were present Thursday night against Brooklyn. The historically great player, and the guy, for one so great, who is maddeningly able to go crashing down, and take his team with him.

There’s so much more context and nuance to all of this than just one game. There’s the fact that since Harden’s arrival the Sixers had won five in a row before the Nets game. There’s the reality Brooklyn played a suffocating defense Thursday they have been hard-pressed to emulate often enough to argue it’s more than an emotion-filled aberration. There’s the very-important reality that the Sixers are still well-positioned in a crowded Eastern Conference standings, while the Nets remain in that dangerous, flip-a-coin play-in purgatory spot. 

There’s the truth that, yes, it was just one game.

But Harden — the record-setting great, the guy from Thursday night who couldn’t handle that hyper-charged atmosphere — will face in the months and years ahead a singular reality that will meld these two parts into one.

He either wins a championship to cement his greatness in a way that truly matters, or else he’s the guy who sets records and dazzles with stats — all while failing, simultaneously, at what actually needs to be done.

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Sports

LeBron James, Lakers teammates exchange words with fans, get booed during blowout loss to Pelicans

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LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are officially at rock bottom.

During a 123-95 embarrassing loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, fans at Crypto.com Arena let the players know how they felt about the recent play of their team. James, Trevor Ariza and Russell Westbrook had no problem confronting fans in the crowd, who booed their beloved Lakers.

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LeBron James of the Lakers shoots a free throw against the Detroit Pistons on Nov. 28, 2021, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
(Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)

WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE

“What do you know about basketball other than the ball going in or not? Shut yo a– up,” James said.

“I don’t give a f— what you are! You a b—-! How about that?” Ariza followed.

After the game, Westbrook was asked by reporters during a press conference if he was bothered by what Lakers fans think.

KNICKS GREAT CHARLES OAKLEY SAYS GIANNIS ANTETOKOUNMPO WOULD ‘COME OFF THE BENCH’ DURING HIS ERA

Los Angeles Lakers’ Russell Westbrook celebrates after sinking a basket against Dallas on Dec. 15, 2021.
(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

“Nah,” Westbrook said. “Take it home? For what? S—. Take it home? I got three beautiful kids at my house. Why would I take it home? If they boo, they can take their a– home. I ain’t worried about that. It doesn’t bother me none.”

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James shoots as New York Knicks guard Quentin Grimes defends on Feb. 5, 2022, in Los Angeles.
(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

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Los Angeles’ loss to the Pelicans was its ninth in 12 games. The Lakers now have a 27-33 record and they hold the final spot in the play-in tournament by only 2.5 games with 22 left this season.

“We got a tough stretch with Dallas, Clippers again Thursday, then Golden State on Saturday,” James said after the game. “And we still got 10 road games this month, or March, so it don’t get easier for us.”

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Sports

Lakers vs. Bucks Final Score: Another blowout loss for L.A.

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Postgame Update: The Lakers eventually lost 131-116 to the Milwaukee Bucks after another fake comeback in the fourth quarter. What follows is our original recap, posted at the third quarter break.

Stop me if you’ve heard this story before: The Lakers played against a title contender on national television, and in front of the entire country, got absolutely punked. On Tuesday night, it was the Milwaukee Bucks, but the opponent and the exact specifics don’t really matter at this point. The main takeaway is that the Lakers just don’t even appear to be playing the same sport as their fellow would-be title contenders.

To illustrate that fact, I published this recap between the third and fourth quarter. The Lakers are down 109-83, and while I’ll update with the final score later, this team was down 30 by midway through the third frame. I’m not wasting my time, and to be honest, if you still have your TV on at this point, good for you. And if they have another one of their now-patented fake comebacks to make it look closer than it was, good for them.

L.A. looked decent offensively in the first half, shooting 50% from the field, but it was on the other end where they didn’t look prepared to stop a literal buck learning to play basketball with its antlers, much less the professional basketball team from Milwaukee. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Co. shot 68.2% in the first against an L.A. defense that offered little to no resistance, both at the rim, or at stopping Milwaukee from getting there. As a result, they gave up 78 points in the first two quarters.

I could get more specific, but does anyone really need that at this point? In slack, we’ve taken to calling these recap posts “recraps,” because it’s almost always “same shit, different day.” Inconsistent role players that can’t put together enough consistency often enough to support LeBron James and Anthony Davis? Russell Westbrook being inefficient? Yes and yes.

The exact numbers don’t really matter. It’s the same stuff, almost every time. I’m done serving as Charlie Brown to this team before it Lucy’s the football away again.

This roster just plain isn’t good enough to contend for a title as currently constructed. Can they change that at the NBA trade deadline on Thursday? Maybe, maybe not. But thankfully we won’t have to watch this exact version of the roster for much longer. They “compete” — I use that term loosely — in their final game before the deadline tomorrow night, when they’ll head to Portland to face the Trail Blazers.

Thankfully, at least that one won’t be on national television.

To keep up with all the latest reports before the deadline, check out our 2022 Lakers trade rumors tracker. For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.



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Business

Alphabet eyes $2 trillion value after blowout results

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Feb 2 (Reuters) – Google parent company Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) advanced nearer to joining peers Apple Inc (AAPL.O) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) in the elite $2 trillion market valuation club on Wednesday as the search giant’s shares surged more than 8% following a blowout quarterly report.

Last trading at about $2,975, Alphabet’s stock was on track for its largest one-day percentage gain in almost two years, easing concerns around owning Big Tech following a sector-wide selloff in the past few weeks.

Alphabet’s stock market value peaked just above $2 trillion after the start of the trading session, and was last at $1.97 trillion. That includes class B shares that do not trade on the stock market and are held by insiders.

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A close above $2 trillion would be the first ever for the Mountain View, California-based company.

“The technology sector started 2022 with some of the biggest question marks over it since the dotcom crash more than two decades ago,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. “However, the largest and highest quality U.S. tech names continue to deliver the answers the market wants with big earnings beats.”

Shares of Wall Street’s most valuable companies have soared in the past two years, driven by pandemic-led shifts in how people work and learn, even as regulators around the world scrutinize them over allegations of breaches of privacy and antitrust concerns.

At least 20 brokerages raised their price targets on Alphabet’s stock after the company late on Tuesday delivered record quarterly sales that topped expectations. The median analyst price target is now $3,450, 16% above its current price. read more

Big Tech stocks, benchmark S&P index are down this year

Alphabet also announced a 20-to-1 stock split, which will give shareholders 19 shares for every share they hold.

Splitting stocks is a method companies use to woo investors by making them more affordable. However, some brokerages, such as Robinhood Markets (HOOD.O), allow investors to buy fractions of shares, making the tactic less effective.

Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) and Apple split their stocks in 2000 to make their shares more appealing to mom-and-pop investors.

“The split will make the shares more accessible for retail investors and likely facilitate inclusion in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (which is somehow still share price-weighted), but it has no fundamental impact,” J.P. Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth said.

Facebook parent Meta Platforms (FB.O), which is set to report results on Wednesday after the bell, was last up 1.1%.

Adding to the rebound in tech stocks, Advanced Micro Devices Inc’s (AMD.O) shares jumped over 5% after its results topped Wall Street expectations. Rivals Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O), Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O) and Micron Technology Inc (MU.O) also rose.

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Reporting by Akash Sriram, Subrat Patnaik and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Noel Randewich in Oakland, California; Editing by Will Dunham and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Sports

Lakers nearly fired Frank Vogel after blowout loss as embattled coach remains on hot seat, per report

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Frank Vogel has been on the hot seat throughout a disappointing 2021-22 season for the Los Angeles Lakers, but things have only gotten harder recently. According to The Athletic’s Bill Oram and Sam Amick, Vogel is being evaluated on a game-to-game basis. They report that he “narrowly avoided” being fired after the Lakers were demolished 133-96 by the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, and had the Lakers lost in similar fashion to the Utah Jazz on Monday, sources believed it could have been Vogel’s last game with the Lakers.

Despite the Lakers pulling off a 10-point second-half comeback, Vogel is very much still coaching for his job, according to The Athletic. The Lakers are a disappointing 22-22 through 44 games, and Vogel’s formerly top-ranked defense has fallen to No. 18 this season due to a combination of injuries and roster turnover. For a team with championship ambitions, those results simply aren’t acceptable.

But Vogel’s job security has been tenuous since before the season even began. When he was initially hired as coach of the Lakers in 2019 he was given only a three-year contract, unusually short for any coach, much less one as accomplished as he was when he got the Laker job. Despite winning the championship in 2020, he was given only a one-year contract extension in the 2021 offseason, suggesting that the team wanted to maintain flexibility should their roster overhaul fail to produce another title.

Sources told The Athletic that former Lakers forward and current executive Kurt Rambis, an influential voice in the organization even without holding the title or powers of a general manager, made it clear to the staff early in the season that their jobs were not safe. Former team president Magic Johnson also voiced his displeasure publicly after the Denver loss with a scathing tweet that read “After being blown out by the Nuggets 133-96, we as Lakers fans can accept being outplayed but we deserve more than a lack of effort and no sense of urgency. Owner Jeanie Buss, you deserve better.” While Johnson no longer technically works in the Lakers front office, he has a decades-long friendship with Buss and was extremely close with her father, the late Jerry Buss.

Vogel has a chance to boost his stock a bit over the next two games because, ironically, he will be coaching against his two former employers. The Lakers will host the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday before starting a five-game road trip against the Orlando Magic on Friday. Those two games are winnable, but afterward, the Lakers have difficult road games against the Heat, Nets and 76ers. Their schedule as a whole in the second half of the season is the hardest remaining in the league. If Vogel needs to win to keep his job, he’ll have his work cut out for him.

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Sports

Immanuel Quickley provides spark in Knicks’ blowout loss

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The Knicks were without noted Celtics killer Evan Fournier on Saturday night, but the teammate who replaced him in the starting lineup at least attempted to assume that role.

With Fournier sidelined with a contused left hip, Immanuel Quickley moved into the starting lineup and scored 12 of his 18 points in the first half to provide one of the few positive performances in the Knicks’ lowest scoring game of the season, a 99-75 blowout loss to the Celtics in Boston.

“I thought he played really well. The first half he had us organized and had real good looks,” coach Tom Thibodeau said of Quickley. “It was a good start for him and then I want him to take more control in the second half, and I think he will. He’s done a good job for us.”

Fournier had netted a season-high 41 points and matched J.R. Smith’s franchise record with 10 made 3-pointers in the Knicks’ buzzer-beating win Thursday over the Celtics at Madison Square Garden. He had averaged 35 points with 20 3-pointers in three games against his former team this season before sitting out Saturday night.

Immanuel Quickley, who scored 18 points, drives past Marcus Smart.
AP

Making only his second start of the season, Quickley nailed all three of his attempts from long distance and played all 12 minutes in the first quarter, when the Knicks grabbed a 26-21 lead.

With guards Derrick Rose (ankle) and Kemba Walker (knee) also still out of the lineup, Quickley remained on the floor to start the second quarter, logging nearly 15 minutes overall before Thibodeau replaced him with RJ Barrett. Quickley’s 12 points in the half paced the Knicks, who trailed by two, 44-42, at intermission.

The 22-year-old former Kentucky star knocked down three midrange jumpers in the third quarter to boost his total to 18. But he didn’t score thereafter and the Celtics extended their lead to as many as 18 before carrying a 76-60 advantage into the final period.

“[Thibodeau] just talked to me one-on-one about [taking control] and I’m still learning,” Quickley said. “I’ll be the first one to tell you I’m not perfect. I want to be, as much as I can be. But just trying to take command of the team and put guys where they need to be whether it’s offense or defense.

“Just going through things like this, it helps out a lot. I’ll be better, we’ll be better next game.”

Though Julius Randle, Barrett and Alec Burks shot a combined 29.4 percent from the field (15-for-51), Quickley finished 7-for-11 and added four assists over 37 minutes, including 3-for-5 from 3-point land.

Other than Quickley and Mitchell Robinson (5-for-5, 11 points), the Knicks posted an aggregate .270 shooting percentage.

“I think our team is our team. … I feel like whoever we play, we can get a win,” Quickley said. “Whoever steps in can help us win, we just have to be better as a team.”

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