The Lakeshow Review

Following a loss to the Portland Trailblazers in LA, the Lakers travelled to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves. Both Los Angeles and Minnesota came in to the contest missing several key players. For the Lakers, LeBron James and Luka Dončić continue to work their way back from injury. Additionally, Marcus Smart, who’s said to be nearing his return to the lineup, also sat out of last night’s game. Minnesota was playing sans their top star Anthony Edwards, however, the rest of their lineup was intact. It was a highly entertaining see-saw battle, one that saw the Lakers prevail at the buzzer to a 116-115 final score. It was a much needed win after a disappointing showing against the Portland Trailblazers last Monday.

Minnesota came out of the gates with every intention of putting away the depleted Lakers, thanks in no small part to the play of power forward Julius Randle. Randle finished with a game-high 33 points, on 50% shooting from the court, including 4-7 from deep. He also grabbed five boards and handed out six assists. His physical play gave Lakers forward Rui Hachimura fits all night. Minnesota managed to build a 19-10 led in the early goings of the game. LA managed to squeeze some good production from Jake LaRavia and Dalton Knecht early on. Knecht in particular, had his second straight game scoring in double digits, as the recent injury barrage has paved way for his playing time. It’s important for the Lakers to get Knecht going, as his floor spacing capabilities open up other avenues for the offense. Austin Reaves once again put his imprint all over this game, as his three-point basket in the second quarter gave LA a jolt of momentum, tying things up at 51. The Lakers would go on to lead Minnesota 62-58 by halftime. Reaves finished with a team-high 28 points on 24 shots, to go with a career-high 16 assists.

Determined to break their vaunted “third quarter curse”, LA came out strong to start the second half. Jake LaRavia produced eight quick points, stretching LAs lead to double figures. The Lakers led by as much as 20 at one point in the third quarter, however, Minnesota sliced that lead to 11 before entering the fourth quarter. The Lakers made a strong bid to close out the Timberwolves, with Austin Reaves and Jake LaRavia both connecting on triples to secure an 11 point lead (112 to 101), with just a little over four minutes left in regulation. In a somewhat disappointing fashion, the Lakers allowed Minnesota back in the game as guard Mike Conley (8 points) and forward Jaden McDaniel (30 points) both hit big threes to help Minnesota reclaim the lead with seconds to go in regulation. Julis Randle’s go-ahead layup gave the Timberwolves a one point lead with 10 seconds left. Austin Reaves would then go to work; catching the inbound pass at the top of the key, then accepting a high ball screen from Deandre Ayton. As Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert crept up to hedge, AR swiftly split the screen, getting in the paint and shooting a contested 12-foot runner over the arms of guard Donte DiVicenzo. That was game. A poor defensive effort by LA late in the fourth saved by Reaves’ heroics.

The Lakers showed some positive signs in this game. Mainly, their ball screen action continues to evolve in a promising fashion. Reaves as an initiator has proven fruitful, as he’s been able to make all the right reads in these situations. Deandre Ayton deserves a lion’s share of the credit as well, as his adept screening angles and aggressive rolling to the basket have opened things up on the perimeter. Often he draws a weakside help defender with him, which opens up either an open corner three, or an open shot to a drifting shooter at the slot. Once again, AR has been hitting the open man consistently. Guys need to make their open shots as well. In this game it was Jake LaRavia, whose 27 points nearly matched AR’s 28. He made five of his six treys, mostly as a result of the threat posed by the Reaves/Ayton two-man game. Ayton’s ability to hit the midrange the short roll is also key, as he doesn’t have to go all the way to rim to score. It’s also a great way to counter teams that play deep drop coverage. I think that LAs ball screen action will only get better once Luka is back in the lineup.

Defensively, it was a different story. Breakdowns in the half court continue to be an issue. Often do the Lakers over help, or over-rotate only to allow an open shot at the rim or from deep. In this game, their nail help was sloppy all game, failing to rotate back to their man on the perimeter. Jaden McDaniels consistently burned them here. Not to mention, the defense played on Julius Randle was uninspiring. Randle’s physicality often bothered Rui Hachimura and even Deandre Ayton. He was also left open repeatedly, where he made the Lakers pay by connecting on four of his seven attempts from range. Tighter rotations and a more disciplined approach to individual help responsibilities will be needed moving forward, as LAs array of defensive meltdowns nearly cost them this game. If not for AR’s heroics, this would have been. a bad loss. Hopefully JJ Redick and his staff can identify these defensive issues and iron out some of those deficiencies. They will need it in order to be a consistently competitive team in a loaded Western Conference.

You will have games like this. The team looked up and down, with various peaks and valleys throughout. Fatigue may also be an issue as the Lakers continue to play severely undermanned as far as their rotations. LeBron James, Luka Dončić, Marcus Smart and Gabe Vincent are all sidelined due to various injuries. Yet, the Lakers competed and played hard nosed basketball, which is a great sign. But their is still some more room to improve as far as the team’s organization and structure defensively. Offensively, they are doing fine. Four of the five starters clocked in double figures scoring, and Dalton Knecht continues his rehabilitation tour following another decent 15-point outing. This definitely speaks to a team that’s trying to punch upward, despite their recent shortcomings, which is something they can be commended for. Hopefully they’ll keep their foot on the gas as they head into Memphis this Friday to take on the Grizzlies. They’ll have to win some games in the immediate future in order to stay above water given the recent injury glitches. Until then, let’s hope they keep trending positively. Go Lakers.