EL SEGUNDO — The featured one-on-one matchup of Lakers practice on Thursday saw LeBron James line up against Anthony Davis, trying to get past his teammate with a shimmy and a dash.

But the pass intended for James was short, and Davis got a hand on it before it fell harmlessly to the turf.

That’s right: Not a fastbreak, but a go route. Not a steal, but an incompletion.

The Lakers got in their warmups at practice by doing drills on a field across the street from their El Segundo practice facility, and they tossed a football around for good measure. After losing four of their last five games – and a bitterly close overtime game against Boston on Tuesday – a change of pace felt welcome for a team in need of a palate cleanse.

The strength and conditioning staff, led by Ed Streit, made the suggestion, and the team did some light agility work and conditioning ladders, not to mention tossing around a pigskin.

“Just getting natural light, getting some vitamin D,” Coach Darvin Ham said. “Getting out some fresh air, and again – it’s a change-up that injects some energy into the group. It definitely gave that.”

Tuesday’s loss was particularly grueling on Davis, who has put forth an All-NBA torrent in the last month but has missed crucial free throws that could have won games in regulation. Davis missed two in a row against the Celtics, leading him to take responsibility for the 122-118 loss and call the moment “unacceptable” for his standard.

Ham told reporters on Thursday that he had taken Davis aside in an effort to take the weight off of his star player’s mind.

“I told him, ‘man, I bet the house’s money on him being in that position every day of the week and twice on Sunday,’” Ham said. “It sucks that the free throws didn’t go down, but at the end of the day, we wouldn’t be in those positions to win the game without him and the type of performances he’s been putting out. We have all the faith in the world and the next time he steps up there, he’s just gotta knock them down.”

The Lakers have bigger issues than Davis, who has averaged 32 points and 14 rebounds over his past 13 appearances. Over their last five games, the Lakers have a 115 defensive rating, which is 21st in the NBA during that stretch. Overall, they’re 13th in defensive rating (111.3) after starting the season as one of the league’s best.

One of Ham’s approaches to improving that end has been to start Patrick Beverley and Dennis Schröder in the backcourt. According to stat site Cleaning The Glass, the duo alongside Davis, James and Lonnie Walker IV has produced a stingy 102.8 defensive rating, but on the other end, they’ve struggled with just a 101.9 offensive rating. Beverley and Schröder are averaging a combined 12.9 points and both are shooting under 26 percent from 3-point range.

Ham indicated he’ll stick with that group as starters to set a defensive tone for games.

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“I’m not worried about (Dennis); his offense is gonna catch up to his defense,” Ham said. “And Pat is gonna make shots. He made two threes last night. Things are gonna turn for the better.”

LAKERS HELP OUT FOR THE HOLIDAYS

The Lakers had a short practice on Thursday, allowing them to get festive: The team hosted a holiday party with children from After-School All-Stars and Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, playing carnival-style games and other activities outside the practice facility.

Many players have their own charitable events going on. Russell Westbrook hosted a shoe giveaway at his namesake school – Westbrook Academy in Southeast L.A. – for some 360 students, one of several events the 34-year-old conducts in his hometown year-round.

“It’s very important for you, people like myself, at least for me personally, to be able to impact a kid, knowing that I understand where he or she are coming from because I lived and grew up in the inner-city myself,” he said. “And understanding what it’s like to not get everything you want for Christmas. But you have something with a family. That’s what’s important. Being able to connect with those kids and know that I’ve experienced what they’ve experienced – maybe not to the depth of everything – but I know and understand how important it is.”

Anthony Davis was adamant that this clip proves he has Darrelle Revis-quality coverage skills. I’m skeptical. https://t.co/3CLJdAFgXt

— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) December 15, 2022

Lakers doing a Season of Giving event with kids. Apparently today is the day when Anthony Davis is trying all new professions. Earlier: cornerback. Now: pastry chef. pic.twitter.com/xhQVKt5Hv8

— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) December 15, 2022