After a loss to the Mavericks which was both disappointing yet offered some teachable moments, the Lakers are back in action against the Kings tonight. Sacramento, with new coach Dave Joerger, is 4-5 on the year and looking to get their 3rd straight win while also climbing back to .500 for the season.
As with past seasons, the Kings are difficult to wrap your head around. They have beat teams they should, but also went on a 5 game road trip which saw them lose to the Magic, Heat, and Bucks but beat the Raptors in the final game of the trip. They have the supremely talented DeMarcus Cousins but also a ton of front court depth beside him, but also want to play faster and small which means sliding Rudy Gay up to PF for stretches.
Another wrinkle for Sacto is that Darren Collison returned from his 8 game suspension in Tuesday’s win over the Pelicans, scoring 9 points and dishing 4 assists in his season debut. Getting Collison back finally organizes their lineup and helps to normalize their rotation. With everyone now properly slotted and without having to rely on short term answers, we will finally get a look at what the Kings real potential is.
This isn’t to say we should just throw out the team’s early season results or that we cannot draw perspective on what this team is or how it wants to play. For example, the Kings play at the 2nd slowest pace in the league, averaging only a tick over 94 possessions a contest. With an offense featuring Cousins as its anchor, this makes sense. Collison may speed the game up some, but I think we will still see their O flow through Boogie, both in the pivot and when isolating from the top of the key/shallow wing against slower defenders.
Which leads us to the first key of this game, how will the Lakers deal with Cousins? And I mean this from a scheme and a match up perspective. I would imagine when Mozgov is in the game the Lakers are unlikely to double unless Cousins is simply dominating the basket area via post ups. But what about when Mozgov is not in the game? The Lakers’ starting C only averages 21 minutes a game while Cousins plays over 32 a night. Will Walton up Mozgov’s minutes? If not, will Black — who is undersized and is better as a help defender than guarding the post one-on-one — get those extra 11 minutes against DMC? Will Walton turn to Randle who is also undersized, but offers more versatility offensively than Black? I am interested in how this plays out.
One thing which may go into those front court decisions is Larry Nance, Jr.’s status. Per Mark Medina of the LA Daily News, Nance still has one more test to pass in the concussion protocol before he will be cleared to play. It is not yet clear if that will happen before the game, but he is on the court taking some shots so maybe he is progressing to the point he is active tonight. What I do know, however, is that the Lakers sure could use him. As noted, the Kings are deep in the front court and have a lot of size to punish an undersized team. Against the Mavs, Luke Walton turned to Thomas Robinson for a short stretch, but ultimately leaned on Luol Deng and even Brandon Ingram for minutes at PF in the 2nd half. Against the Kings, those latter two might struggle against twin tower lineups which include any two of the Cousins/Koufos/Cauley-Stein trio.
The other major key is which team can determine the rules of engagement when it comes to tempo. As noted earlier the Kings play slow, but the Lakers are at the other end of the spectrum. Playing at the 2nd fastest place in the league, the Lakers want to run, get into early offense, and hurt defenses which are not yet set. While the Kings can also play faster than they have to this point, I think this game tilts in the Lakers’ favor if they can dictate the speed of the game. This will come down to getting defensive stops, rebounding, and forcing some turnovers, however. For what it’s worth, the Kings are an excellent offensive rebounding team but can be turnover prone as well. We will see if these trends hold and, if they do, which ones matter more in helping determine tempo.
Lastly, a game after the Lakers had real struggles defending Harrison Barnes, how the Lakers match up with Rudy Gay concerns me somewhat. When these teams matched up in the preseason for their 2nd game, Gay gave Luol Deng some issues with his length and quickness and Ingram with his superior strength. There is a good chance tonight these issues will continue. Also, when the Kings slide him up to PF, he can create match up issues for Randle or Nance (should he play). Ensuring Gay does not have a big night, then, becomes nearly as much a priority as managing Cousins.
As they say in boxing, styles make fights. Both of these teams can be adaptable to each other’s respective styles, which I think should translate to an interesting push and pull all game. Hopefully the Lakers can get back on track and beat their division foe.
Where you can watch: 7:30pm start time on TNT
david__h says
Darius:now that the
other “contest” is over;I can pay full
attention to tonite’s game vs the sacramento.Thanks for the preview;forgot
they got some pretty good players.We will
too someday.Tonite should be fun.
Go lakers
30twhite40 says
Larry Nance Jr will be available for tonight’s game after clearing the concussion protocol.
Darius Soriano says
As I wrote about, the Kings have the ability to play faster than they have to start the year. They are playing more the Lakers tempo, but taking advantage of defensive breakdowns in transition and some poor Lakers’ execution on O.
30twhite40 says
Kings 20 points off 12 Lakers turnovers while LA has 2 points of 7 Sacramento turnovers. Lakers down 10 at the half need to take care of the ball in the second half. They are in this game and hope to see a great 3rd and 4th quarters by the Lakers.
LKK says
Juice Randle kept the team in striking distance with a strong 2nd Q….am really starting to have serious doubts about Luol Deng… Brandon Ingram has some great playmaking skills…let’s see what adjustments, if any are made on Cousins for the 2nd half.
Mid Wilshire says
At half time, the Lakers have 12 TOs; the Kings, by contrast, have only 7. Also, the Lakers have 2 offensive rebounds to the Kings’ 5.
This results in the Kings having 8 more offensive possessions than the Lakers. That alone helps to explain a 10 point advantage. (I’m surprised it isn’t higher. Of course, it was up to 17.)
Obviously, 12 turn overs in one half is far too many. D’Angelo Russell, meanwhile, has 9 points (4-7 shooting) but zero rebounds, zero assists, and 4 TOs. That doesn’t help. He must do a better job of being a floor general.
Cousins is destroying the Lakers, especially inside. He has 18 points at half. The Lakers must slow him down somehow. Rudy Gay is also playing well (10 pts., 7 rebounds). The Lakers have got to keep an eye on him as well.
This could be a long night unless the Lakers tighten up their D and stop turning the ball over.
LKK says
@Mid Wilshire…..completely agree about DAR. He is just too lackadaisical with the ball. Perhaps finding a lineup where he can play off ball more might be an option.
LKK says
JR sets a great screen to free up Swaggy for a mid range jumper and then assists him on a 3. Lakers within 5.
LKK says
Great job by the Lakers to cut it to a 3 point deficit to start the 4th. LNJr showing his value with his hustle and defense.
30twhite40 says
Lets go Lakers chant in Sacramento, some things never change.
LKK says
JR has emerged as the Lakers’ tough guy. Guy is fearless.
Joel_ says
Mozgov earned his paycheck tonight. Cousins is about to lose his mind.
FredP says
D’Angelo Young shredding the King defense.
fern16 says
This Jekill and Hyde game huh? Lakers keep impressing everyone!!!
fern16 says
It’s just a joy watching this team grow in front of our eyes. Luke adjustments have Byron Scott all over them. End of sarcasm. This is why Mozgov is getting paid like it or not. Does anyone picture Hibbert battling like this? I like Mozgov more and more by the game.
FredP says
Randle has been embracing his inner beast.
30twhite40 says
Lakers with a great second half rally to beat the Sacramento Kings 101-91 after being down by 19 in the first half. Impressive win.
fern16 says
BABY LAKERS…
Jokr says
Mozgov got 3 rebs and 10pts in 33 min…
This is not worthy of 64 mil
fern16 says
Mozgov don’t have the big stat lines. Don’t matter, he do all the little things. Games like today are the reason he was brought in.
LKK says
Very nice game! Juice got into Cousin’s head. The second unit did a great job. Love that Luke went with the players who were getting the job done down the stretch. Mozzy was huge defensively and set some great screens in crunch time. That left handed slam of his off the Ingram feed was serious highlight material. Had me jumping for joy!
fern16 says
did you watch the game?. He does all the little things that Hibbert was incapable to do. He wasn’t brought in to score 20-10. He was brought in to do what he is doing. He provides rim protection run decent for such a big man, and set bone crushing screens. The other centers didn’t want to play for the Lakers so they went and secured their man fast. He fits like a glove on this team. And people can complain but he is working hard and is all in with this team. I want to ask, who else was available? Because people talk like the Lakers had a buffet of centers chomping at the bit to play for them. They knew even before the free agency started that Whiteside, ezely ect ect ect weren’t interested so they grabbed their man. And its paying off.
LKK says
Mozzy earned his money tonight just by taking the abuse and physical punishment Boogie was dishing out. Stats don’t mean much unless you win.
rocha311 says
surprised nick young was playing VERY physical defense tonight! hope to see more of this regularly. the tone they came back with should be set from tip off but being a young team, it’s going to be hard to do
Jokr says
fern16 doing little things means hes worth 64 mil? i don’t think so. I’m not saying that he didn’t contribute. He’s certainly better than Hibbert but not worth 64 mil.
If there was nobody available, I personally would have re-signed Hibbert. He ended up signing for 1yr 5 mil. Before he got injured, he avg 7.5ppg, 5.5rpg and 2.5bpg. At a year 5 mil, hes a bargain compared to Mozgov.
Hersho Barazi says
Jokr fern16 You clearly did not watch the game…and are proving yourself to be a sucker for the stat sheet. If Mozgov did not play as well as he did tonight, we would have had a snowballs chance in hell of getting the win. He absolutely locked down Cousins, who many consider the best C in the league, in the second half. When you play that well, and contribute that much in categories that don’t appear on the stat sheet, then you win the game. And winning is the goal Jokr… If he averaged 15 and 10 and did not do any of the little things, leading to many losses, would you be happier?? The fact of the matter is, when he directly gets us the win, he is in fact worth all of the money we paid him. 64 sounds like an exorbitant price tag, but when you consider the TV deal that contributed to the inflation this year in the NBA market, its really not hard to swallow. Especially when 1) we were required to spend the money to reach the salary floor (theres a floor and not just a cap) and 2) he is contributing to every win, leading to a 5-4 record (with 4 “good” losses) that have analysts falling out of their chairs in surprise.
fern16 says
Good thing is not up to you. Yeah, let’s resign Hibbert to be a black hole in the middle. That would’ve go down like a fart in church. Can’t run, can’t defend can’t bumb with other big men anymore. like he used to and is soft. Hibbert took that paycut because he is not worth big money anymore. And he is injured right now. The Lakers needed a upgrade at center and got it. They had to overpaid to do it, but they did what they had to do. They rather overpaid for Mozgov than resign a bum like Roy… Resign Hibbert, good joke, made me chuckle.
Jokr says
Hersho Barazi Jokr fern16 i did watch the game and i saw what he did. I’m just saying thats not worth 64 mil.
1. There is no requirement to spend the money. If you don’t reach the floor, the money is redistributed between the players.
2. I didn’t say he is not contributing to wins. I just don’t believe he is worth the contract.
Jokr says
fern16 Yes, when it is up to F.O, they overpay for free agents like Deng and Mozgov. Notice how nobody is talking about how bad Deng is doing. Now there’s the real joke.
bluehill says
Kenny Smith said something interesting during the halftime show when comparing the prospects for the Lakers and the Kings. He said once you learn to play hard for 82 games then your talent can start taking over. I don’t know what its like to play professional sports, but I take it from Kenny’s comment that understanding how to play hard for an entire game and to do it for 82 games is a learned process.
The Laker’s young core (and some of the older guys, looking at you Nick, Lou and Moz) has the talent and so far Luke and coaching staff have done a great job utilizing that talent, but sounds like, more importantly, getting them to play harder for longer during a game and from game to game.
BTW Kenny thought the Lakers had better upside than the Kings because the Lakers are “developing” whereas the Kings are “developed.”
KL2016 says
Jokr Hersho Barazi fern16
1. That’s the point. Why would you want to distribute the money to the players instead of having a useable/rotational player? At the end of the day, the market dictated how much players are paid.
CeeDeeP says
It is truly an honor and a delight to read your insightful analysis (without the drama) of our baby LAKERS and their roller-coaster moments on the court!!!
I am really excited to see their development under a coach who not only provides guidance and motivation for them to excel but is also so in tune with each one of them that will push to make the most of their talents without the ol’ school approach.
Our LAKERS are beginning to show their baby teeth and their hunger for winning!!!
And WE are enjoying history in the making!!!
CeeDeeP says
Maybe not just yet but give him time…
He’s still recovering from injury, adapting to a new coach and a very talented core!
It’s Deng I’m concerned about…
CeeDeeP says
I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me!!! It doesn’t get any better than that…