The Lakeshow Review

After clobbering the Wizards in D.C., the Los Angeles Lakers travelled to New York for a two game set against the Knicks and Nets. It was a mixed bag as we saw both good and bad, but at the very least the team was able to salvage their losses. The Knicks game didn’t go as planned, with LA battling NY tightly for three-and-a-half quarters before running out of gas as the Knicks prevailed 112-100. It was a quick turnaround, however, as the team geared up to face the crosstown Brooklyn Nets two days later. This time things fared more positively towards the Purple and Gold, prevailing 125-109. In a predictable outcome, LA lost against the better team (Knicks) and were able to bounce back against the lesser one (Nets). The fact that the Lakers don’t consistently fare well against top teams is certainly a concern. Yet they’re still managing to take care of business in games they’re heavily favoured, signalling that it’s perhaps not the end of the world.

Against the Knicks, Luka was once again brilliant, notching 30 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists, leading both sides in scoring and rebounding. LeBron James had another deceptive “stuff-the-statsheet” game with 22 points, five boards and six assists. Not a terrible night, but in a crucial game where Luka needed reinforcement, it wasn’t nearly enough. He was outscored and outplayed by OG Anunoby (25 points, eight boards) and reserve guard Landry Shamet (23 points on 6-10 three-point shooting). At $55M and taking up nearly 35% of the cap, LeBron, as the highest paid member of the roster simply needs to do more. Alas, he cannot. Which is a problem, and will continue to be so.

The Lakers actually took a 56-52 lead into halftime, but their defense was once again a detriment in the second half. New York outscored LA 60-44 in the final 24 minutes, and did so by punishing the Lakers’ poor defensive rotations. They also aggressively beat LA at the point of attack, with Karl Anthony-Towns being in prime position to clean up the glass (Towns finished with 13 rebounds). LAs interior defense, and interior defensive rotations continue to be a source of pain. As Deandre Ayton doesn’t exactly offer a defensive presence down low, and whenever he’s forced to rotate, the team lacks sound strategies to sink and fill, thus failing to minimize put-back chances. The Knicks finished with 13 second chance points, many of them coming in the second half, as they eventually pulled away to close out the game. As is the case with many of these losses, the team’s defensive effort just wasn’t up to par.

Two nights later versus Brooklyn, things looked much brighter. The team controlled the pace of play from tip-off, breezing their way to a 125-109 win. This game marked the return of Austin Reaves to the rotation, who finished with 15 points and four rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench. AR had missed the previous 19 games, nursing a calf strain. His offensive scoring and creation has been sorely missed, and his presence will hopefully help reset the pecking order and guys falling back into their natural roles.

LeBron tallied 25 points, three rebounds and seven assists while Luka finished with 24 points, six rebounds and five assists (as well as five turnovers). Jake LaRavia also had a well-rounded night, with 18 points and eight rebounds. The scoring looked much more balanced with AR back in the fold, and against a bottom-feeder in Brooklyn, LA was comfortably in control all throughout. In retrospect, this was a good game for Reaves to come back, as it was a low-pressure affair relative to competition. The offense looked much more polished, as well as energetic. The Lakers made an effort to front the post in order to deny the post-entry, which led to several deflections which in turn led to fast break opportunities. LA had 31 transition points, to Brooklyn’s 18. One would be remiss to ignore the fact that Brooklyn are a terrible team, which makes everything seem about 25% better. Nonetheless, it was nice to see the team incorporate some high pick-and-roll action once again, where Luka was able to thrive as the main initiator. On the other hand, it’s disappointing to see Deandre Ayton continue his slew of subpar performances, as he tallied just seven points (after scoring 13 versus the Knicks). The team shot poorly from deep, connecting on just seven of 31 attempts, which is troubling, and speaks to how poor the Nets are, as LA still won by blowout form. At least they were able to dominate in transition, and attacking the basket, somehow managing to shoot 54% as a team.

This formula, however, is not a sustainable one, as they’ll surely have to fare better from the perimeter in order to compete against better clubs. The return of Austin Reaves will help to shore things out offensively, but they’re still going to need consistent minutes out of guys like Jarred Vanderbilt, Jake LaRavia, Marcus Smart and Rui Hachimura. Team defense, defensive rotations and perimeter on-ball defense will all have to improve if the Lakers wish to seriously compete in the Western Conference. Even in a blowout win against the Nets, the defensive lapses were glaring. Often over-trapping, missing key rotations and executing lazy closeouts that made the hapless Nets appear more capable than they are. Alas, the team put forth enough offense to control the game, and were also able to reward their key rotational players with much needed rest in the fourth quarter, during extended garbage time. Moving forward, they’ll have to polish some things defensively and keep progressing offensively, as they ease AR back into the starting five. They’ll have their hands full going up against a talented Philadelphia Sixers on Thursday, as they head back home for a well-deserved eight-game homestand. After culminating the road trip at 5-3, with several ups and downs, there’s still much room for improvement. Heading back home and having AR back in the lineup will hopefully give them the necessary jolt to keep moving things forward. Go Lakers.