The Los Angeles Lakers lost 110-96 to the Miami Heat despite the absence of Jimmy Butler and Kyler Martin. It was their ninth loss in their last 12 games and the first time they scored less than 500 points this season.

LeBron James took the brunt of the criticism for his worst performance of the season. He finished with 12 points, six rebounds and nine assists on 6-of-18 shooting from the field, including 0-of-6 from beyond the arc.

His struggles were evident from the start, as James looked uncomfortable running the floor and failed to crack the Heat's defense. Fans couldn't help but feel the irony considering James won two championships and reached the Finals four times in his four years under Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra.

Twitter erupted with "whitewashing" and "Father Time" memes directed at the 39-year-old superstar. One particularly happy fan wrote, "LeBron James is finally whitewashed, let's fucking go, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed, LeBron James is finally whitewashed Whitewashed, LeBron James finally washed up, LeBron James finally washed up, LeBron James finally washed up, LeBron James finally washed up.

The Lakers' woes go far beyond James. Their usual tricks - turnovers and poor 3-point shooting - were at work again. 21 turnovers allowed the Heat to score 22 points, and the Lakers hit 26 of their 30 long-range attempts while Miami hit 16 of 42 from long range.

Anthony Davis led the team with a near MVP performance, chipping in 29 points, 17 rebounds, six assists and five caps while shooting 58.8 percent from the field. Austin Reeves returned to the starting lineup and provided a spark with 24 points, five rebounds and eight assists on 58.3 percent shooting.

However, the absence of James, Taurean Prince and Cam Reddish offset any positive momentum. Despite the Heat's similarly sluggish offensive performance, the Lakers' persistent turnovers were too much for them to handle, especially in the first half.

The Miami Heat finally found their rhythm in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Lakers 38-29 to seal the win by 24 points. The win improved the Heat's record to 20-14, while the Lakers fell to 17-18 and 11th place in the Western Conference.

The recent setbacks have fueled trade rumors for the Lakers. With their star player struggling and the team as a whole underperforming, they could be one of the most aggressive teams chasing another star at the trade deadline. Names like Zach LaVine and Dejounte Murray have been linked to potential trades.

The Lakers season is in jeopardy. Can they turn it around or will they face another disappointing campaign? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure: LeBron James needs to find his form, and fast, so the Lakers can salvage their championship aspirations.