The Lakeshow Review

The Lakers concluded their five-game road trip in Milwaukee with an exclamation point, as they convincingly defeated the Bucks by final score of 119-95. The team was coming off a victory against the New Orleans Pelicans where they played somewhat inconsistent. The put forth a much improved effort versus Milwaukee, which showcased the team’s full capacities on both the offensive and defensive ends. In doing so, LA concludes its first lengthy road trip of the season on a high note, and avoid the let-down of returning home on a dour disposition. Despite some ups and downs durig their road trip, the Lakers managed a 3-2 record, and now sit at 10-4 overall, which shows that they’re still finding ways to win even when they don’t play their best basketball. There’s still ample room for improvement however, even if the team can be proud of how they’ve played thus far.

The Lakers raced out to an early 13-point lead, behind sound ball movement and execution on offense. The team employed the use of drag screens to get their offense going early, as Milwaukee opted to trap in the early stages of the game. Unlike the OKC game, Austin Reaves was ready to come off a pindown to demand the basketball, and relieve the pressure off of Luka. AR had it going early, and finished the game with a robust 25 points, six boards and eight assists. Dončić however was not to be outdone, and very quickly figured out Milwaukee’s defensive tactics. The Bucks guarded Luka’s ball screens at the level for most of the night, to which Luka countered by either splitting the screen, stepping back for a three (if the screen setter slipped the screen, leaving him one-on-one), or hitting the roll-man/screener once he was past his man. He did this to devastating effect, finishing the game with 41 points, nine rebounds, six assists, a steal and two blocks. Luka scored 12 of those points in the opening quarter, as LA marched out to a 30-18 advantage after 12 minutes.

They’d go on to open that lead even further during the following quarter, as the team established a 65-34 advantage by the half mark. LA held Milwaukee to just 10 of 41 from the field (24%) and 4-19 from three (19%), which marks easily the team’s best defensive half thus far. LAs effort on that end was tremendous, as they actively swarmed passing lanes, deployed crisp rotations and did a relatively sound job of staying in front of the basketball. Their shell defense also saw its best results. A tip of the cap must go to Deandre Ayton, whose 20 points and 10 rebounds marked his second consecutive double-double of the 20 and 10 variety. This game, he was once again able to be a force in the paint, consistently being the recipient of Austin Reaves or Luka Dončić feeds as a roller on screen-and-roll actions. His play was also key in keeping pace with Bucks star big man Giannis Antetokounmpo, who scored a team-high 32 points and 10 boards. However, Ayton having the capacity to make him work on defense was key. Aside from Giannis, no other Buck truly killed LA, as Milwaukee was held to just 40% shooting as a team. Defense was certainly the Lakers’ high point in this contest.

Unfortunately, the team endured yet another third quarter dry spell, as the Bucks awoke from their slumber to shoot 63% for the quarter, good for 38 points, to LAs 27. The Lakers once again took their foot off the gas pedal, allowing a 20-5 run by Milwaukee, as careless ballhandling (5 turnovers) and poor shot-selection gave the opposition some hope, when the game had been firmly in LAs grasp. At one point, the lead was trimmed all the way down to 14 points, before Luka gave the Lakers a swift eight points to push the lead up to 20 before the final quarter.

LA clamped down during the fourth quarter, and were able to put the game away midway through the period, as their 27 points outpaced Milwaukee’s 23. The Lakers played a very complete game, shooting 49% from the field to go with 39% from beyond the arc. They also went 30-33 from the free-throw line, an area that’s been an issue in recent games. Their 47 rebounds, 23 assists, 13 steals and four blocks were impressive and indicative of a team determined to refrain from making the same mistakes that undermined them in recent performances. They can still push for a better sustained effort for 48 minutes, but this is certainly a step in the right direction. LA should get a boost once Rui Hachimura (calf tightness) and Marcus Smart (illness) presumably return to the lineup. LeBron James is also due for a return in the coming days, after missing all 14 games so far. Now they get to go back home, where they’ll take on the Utah Jazz this Tuesday, before travelling to Utah to take on the Jazz for a second time. After that they’ll enjoy a healthy four-game homestand, where they should look to make a push to improve their record and begin to claim their stronghold as one of the top seeds in the Western Conference. Despite the ups and downs so far, the team is 10-4 and still looking to get better. We’ve yet to see a stretch of dominant basketball with a healthy lineup intact. Fortunately, they’re still in good schedule to start ramping things up. Go Lakers.