Before Sunday’s matinee, the Lakers had only won 12 games and their opponent, the Warriors had only lost 5. If numbers like this were the case after 25 games they might seem normal. But we are in the home stretch of the NBA season and the Warriors are historically great while the Lakers, at least in terms of their franchise history, are historically bad.
This game, then, was supposed to be a formality. But the Lakers flipped that narrative on its head by beating the Warriors 112-95, controlling the action for much of the game and leading for the final 30+ minutes of the contest. It was, from a score and control standpoint, their easiest win of the year and it came against the best team in the league.
If we didn’t have the highlights, I might not believe this actually happened. Fortunately, though, we do.
All the highlights from the Lakers win over Golden State!!https://t.co/NwbVnZ7x8t
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 6, 2016
More than anything else, this game was fun. It was fun to see the young players do so well — to see Russell bounce back from his subpar game on Friday and resume his hot play from the past moth, to see Clarkson get hot from behind the arc and short circuit the Warriors’ defense, to see Randle work the glass + slip into the creases of the defense to score, to see Marcelo Huertas bring the “Brazilian Nash” moniker to life with some fantastic passes and one-legged finishes around the paint.
It was also fun to see the team rewarded with a win after playing hard and smart on both ends of the floor against a good team. Especially against this team. The Warriors, for most of this season, have found ways to win games where teams do pretty much everything right against them. They find ways to turn a minor, every game mistake into a stepping stone for a run. They turn double digit deficits around in a few possessions, then pour gas on their own fire and shift the tenor of the game in their favor, never looking back.
It wasn’t in the cards for them today, though. And while a lot of that was due to their own play, it would be disingenuous to not credit the Lakers too. It was the Lakers’ bigs who didn’t get caught sagging low on the P&R where Curry or Klay got clean looks coming off picks. It was the Lakers’ guards who fought hard over picks and were active in the passing lanes. And it was a team effort to keep continuity within the defensive scheme, not allowing the Warriors the types of repeated open looks they punish so frequently.
And yes, it was only one game. But what a game it was. For one day the Lakers looked like the best version of themselves. The fact that it came against the league’s best and it led to a double digit win at home made it that much sweeter.
Now, for some extra notes:
https://vine.co/v/iXDveD0KIbb
- What’s that, you say? That’s not a note of any sort? You’re right. It’s not.
- The Lakers won this game with their defense, holding the Warriors to an Offensive Rating of 91.1 for the game.
- The Warriors only shot 4-30 from behind the arc. For comparison’s sake, Jordan Clarkson made 4 of his 6 attempts from deep. If you’re looking for the main reason the Warriors never put it together on offense, the conversation pretty much starts and ends there.
- The other key on defense? Forcing turnovers. The Lakers had 12 steals and forced 20 turnovers overall. Some of that was sloppy play by the Warriors, but give the Lakers credit for jumping passing lanes, having active hands, and simply not quitting on plays where it looked like they might be beat.
- Marcelo Huertas has been a regular on “Shaqtin a Fool” this year for some of his more, well, hilarious exploits. But this guy really can play point guard. Surround him with more talent than what’s found on the Lakers’ garbage time group and suddenly he’s whipping passes to shooters cross court, dropping pocket passes to the roll man in the P&R, throwing soccer-style over head passes for lobs, and just playing a joyful brand of offensive basketball. It all came together for him on Sunday and boy was it fun to watch.
- This wasn’t Kobe’s best game, but he was a stabilizing force during his minutes. He never once forced the action, moved the ball well, and did good work off the ball as a cutter and by ducking into the post within the Lakers’ motion sets.
- Speaking of the Lakers’ offense, credit Byron Scott for implementing this “set” (as he calls it). Russell and Huertas look much better running this than the Princeton and it has led to more ball and player movement. Why they couldn’t have run this for the entire season is beyond me, but that’s a topic for another day.
- This dunk didn’t count, but I don’t care. Let Larry dunk:
After the whistle, Larry Nance Jr rocks the rim like his dad with the cradle dunk!#Lakers
(Shared Via @clippittv)pic.twitter.com/iq6IbFbuy8— NBA On Def Pen (@NBAOnDefPen) March 6, 2016
- My other favorite highlight from this game? Russell pulling a “Curry” by spinning around/knowing this corner three was going in:
https://vine.co/v/iXDd5bbawWU
- Brandon Bass…I cannot say enough good about him. Dude is just plays hard and knows how to use his physicality to his advantage. He as a team high +16 on the night, hit 5 of his 7 shots, and added 7 rebounds (3 offensive). I know the Lakers are set at PF moving forward, but I wouldn’t mind having him back next year as a small-ball C. After starting slowly, he’s been a revelation in that role this season.
Gene says
Can’t believe Bass and Huertas was benched earlier this season.Both can do well coming off the bench.Hibbert playing less minutes then usually was a plus.Also Williams as a starter hurts the Lakers with his defense and poor shooting pct.Replace Kobe and his 35% shooting next season Sign Hibbert cheaply and use him on the second unit.Huertas… Williams…Nance…Hibbert and Bass wouldn’t be a bad second unit.Then for the first unit you have Clarkson….Randle and Russell.Add 2 good players and you will have s playoff team.
Reed says
At least we now have tangible confirmation that there’s upside in these youngins worth hoping for.
Lakerdreams says
Russell’s 3 Triples in a row were Dope.
Our Splash Brothers were Hitting!!!!
LKK says
In a bleak season, this is a very encouraging win. The GSW backcourt is the gold standard at present. It was really great to see JC & Russ step up to the challenge. They’re going to be battling those guys for years to come. Tons of credit to Huertas as well.
BigCitySid says
– Obviously a great win. Kids played well. Really hope Lakers retain Bass.
– Suns won yesterday also, making Laker win that much sweeter.
– Hoping this late improved play by team isn’t misunderstood by the Buss (Bust) family…Scott still has to go.
Vasheed says
@BCS,
I’m not a fan of Scott but, I think he is doing exactly what he needs to do to save is job. Beating GS doesn’t hurt his chances to come back but, it is more than that. Since dumping the Princeton the Lakers have looked better all around especially the young kids. If that narrative continues to the end of the season it is going to be hard to justify dumping Scott when he still has another guaranteed season and looks to have figured things out. It is still very early, but a win vs GS cannot be interpreted as anything but a first stepping stone in the right direction.
bluehill says
Interesting article about rebuilds looking at Orlando. Maybe one reason that Lakers FO took DLo over Okafor: felt like they could build around DLo better.
http://basketball.realgm.com/analysis/241072/Orlando-And-The-Difficulty-Of-Finding-A-Truly-Elite-Player-In-Lottery-Land
“Part of the problem facing Orlando has to do with one the most undervalued factors in the NBA today: fit. Oladipo, Payton, Gordon, starting center Nikola Vucevic and the recently traded Tobias Harris are all interesting, young prospects in a vacuum. The issue for the Magic, is that this eclectic group of youngsters have been jammed together with a total disregard for how their skillsets overlap. And while it’s easy to lay that at the feet of the team’s architect, Hennigan, it’s almost an unavoidable result of this scorched earth rebuilding policy.
When teams get as bad as the Orlando did once Howard was sent packing, they dive headfirst into asset collection mode. Any young player from Vucevic to Evan Fournier, is brought if the deal is right. Like the lottery, it’s just playing the odds. Acquire enough young talent and something good is bound to happen — until it doesn’t.
This is the other drawback of not landing a franchise cornerstone during a rebuild like the Magic’s. Where a team like Dallas has ripped up and rebuilt their roster on the fly for years around Dirk Nowitzki, Orlando doesn’t have a focal point. There is no dominant player with a clearly defined skillset so there can’t be a plan in place to build a cohesive roster around it.”
Gary says
Hate the fact that there are always asterisks when the Lakers win:
1) Warriors obviously looked past the Lakers (because we’re really not that good)
2) Warriors reportedly were out well past bedtime on Saturday night (see #1, above)
3) Lakers can’t afford to win too many games at season’s end — not having anything to show for this awful year would be devastating on many levels. In other words the goal is to keep the pick.
Byron will have to figure out how to lose some very winnable games that are left on the schedule. Still, it’s heartening the kids played well and the win is a nice feather in their caps looking forward.
T. Rogers says
Heck of a game by the Lakers. Russell is getting more comfortable with his game. And that is great to see. Yes, Golden State underestimated them. And in return the Lakers embarrassed the Warriors. This kind of win will do a lot to boost the psyche of a young team that has had more downs than ups this season.
If the Warriors do break Chicago’s record they can give a head nod to the Lakers. The Lakers just taught them a valuable lesson about looking past teams.
Anonymous says
One game does not mean anything, but there’s an underlying feeling lately that B Scott’s approach with the youngsters was wrong. Not saying this team would be a contender. Far from it. But there is certainly enough young talent here that with the right motivation AND coaching could have been a fun team to watch.
In retrospect, the decision to hire Byron will be judged as the right one if we get to keep our pick. Ironic, isn’t it?
stats says
Regarding BS and the youngsters: I read an interesting interview with MWPeace a couple of weeks ago in which he praised all of the youngsters (Nance, Randle and Clarkson) except Russell. He noted DLOs talent but also implied that he had to mature because he goofed off too much in practice. I’m no fan of Byron, but it suggested to me that he probably did the right thing in relegating DLO to the bench. DLOs recent improvement suggests he got the message (and is getting more comfortable, etc. etc.). BS’s gamble with Bass at C is also paying off. I’m more critical than supportive of BS, but I fear we do have to give him some credit. I’m also no fan of the tank, but to lose the chance for the pick now would be a travesty… so here’s hoping that aren’t many games like Sunday!
Gary says
In retrospect, the decision to hire Byron will be judged as the right one if we get to keep our pick. Ironic, isn’t it?
__
These last three years have seen a case load of ironies: Thin rosters touted as playoff ready yet easily convertible to stealth tank mode 20 games into the season. A coach hired due to his Lakers bloodline and ties to our glorious past being asked to steer the team into the lottery (again). A superstar who prized winning above all else providing cover for an organization that can only move forward by losing. Indeed, we are a team of contradictions.
I’m looking forward to next year. It will be so refreshing to just try and win with no strings attached.
Craig W. says
From Byron and the player’s perspective, there are no strings attached to the rest of the year. They all want to win as much as possible. We fans will just have to adjust to that. Also, if the team play materially improves over the remainder of the season, Byron is likely to finish out his contract – as he has proved his approach does benefit development of the youngsters.
Whatever we hope for, we will just have to wait-and-see.
KevTheBold says
I’m just gratified that more people are beginning to see that our core especially D’Angelo, are worthy of the optimism some of us felt.
They only needed to be unleashed in a proper setting.
Despite the troubles that persist in the front office, I hope we will begin to support our core with more unity, as this pessimism and bashing has gone long past stink.
LordMo says
Great game plan BScott and the youngsters executed it well! They are starting to look like NBA pro players. I agree keep Bass a pros pro and one of the guys Draymont Green doesn’t want to see. Bass nullified his overrated azz and 7 turnovers were committed by Mr. Overrated!
We been hard on BScott but really the kids have not been able to follow a game plan. It was nice to see they got it and we could see they were getting it! Yesterday draft pick be damn it was nice to see someone humble GS a bit and our boys grow up a litlle. Special Kudos to KB24 for inspiring the lads onto victory.
Now that they are understanding the game better … its time for them to learn to win and to execute every night at a high level.
LordMo says
@Darius
The Lakers are not set at any one position going forward period. We have a promising young core that has a long way to go before they are legitimate contenders and some role players that’s it. The only known entity KB24 will be gone. We are going to see many more ups and downs over the next couple years and some new faces I’m sure.
Wouldn’t miss it for the world!