Aloha,
I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving. As Laker fans there has been a lot to feel thankful for. Last night we blasted the number 2 defense in the league on a night when AD returned to the lineup. Yes defense still wins championships but in this new age of NBA basketball explosive offense, it’s the offense that is more important than ever
Dallas did score more than they have been but it was clear to see that with AD back, they will begin to score more. It wasn’t so much his scoring, only 12 points, but it was the adjustments we had to make to account for him, leading to a lot of good looks for the Mav’s. And like it’s been all year, we clamped down defensively when we had to. A few thoughts.
Is LeBron now the 3rd option on the Lakers? Could be. LeBron’s game was impactful but he only scored 13 points, although his 4th quarter 3 was the dagger. Everyone believed when LeBron returned that both Luka and Austin’s scoring would go down. And that could eventually be the case but so far they seem to be scoring at will. Austin had a game high 38 while poor Luka had to settle for his season average of 35. But let’s not dismiss the LeBron effect. Just having him on the court results in more open looks, especially for Austin.
And speaking of Austin, the new international all star format will have both Luka and SGA playing on the international team. Who in the west has been better than Austin other than those two. It could lead to not only Austin’s first all star game but a start as well.
One thing I’m am thankful for this season is that we didn’t sign Brook Lopez or Al Horford. Both look washed, especially Brook who is racking up DNP’s coached decision.
What we did get was Ayton falling into our laps. Not only has he been good, he is playing the best basketball of his career. He more than held his own against both AD and Gaford. By the way he is head and shoulders better than Gafford. Ayton has a well rounded game, scoring, rebounding and defending. Just like having a lot of steals doesn’t make you a great defender, having a lot of blocks doesn’t necessarily make you a great rim defender. Ayton averages a little over a block a game but is top 10 in rim protection. He certainly is playing himself into a long term deal with the Lakers. He certainly is playing with joy this year.
I would say something about Luka, but well, you know. Unworldly ability. Unstoppable. Enough said.
Rui had an uncharacteristic poor shooting 1st half but he turned it around and hit 4 3’s and scored 14 in the 2nd half. He was one of the reasons we pulled away. Rui is the 5th option! Imagine having a guy shooting 48% from 3 as your 5th option. Unheard of. And he does it while playing solid, underrated defense. They definitely should extend him. You don’t want him walking for nothing this summer.
Our bench continues to not score much. But that doesn’t matter as much for the Lakers because of JJ’s rotations. He always has plenty of fire power on the floor. Whether it’s LeBron and Austin or Luka, Rui and Ayton our 2nd unit guys really are not getting a lot of shots. And they all are playing well. Gabe defends and hits his open looks and Jaxon is so much better this year. He put on 15 pounds of muscle over the offseason and it’s showing. Marcus is huge defensively when he plays and Jake, just does a little of everything well.
Yes the Lakers have had a pretty easy schedule. All though they have beat teams with a lot of talent, that should be a lot better. But the team with the easiest schedule has been the Thunder. They have only played 2 teams with winning records and the plucky Suns nearly beat them last night. Are they the best team? Sure, but it’s beginning to look like the Lakers could be nipping at their heels.
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