The Lakers moved to 7-5 on the season with a 125-118 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday. The win wasn’t pretty, but it counts the same in the standings. Standings, which I might add, are something fans of the team are actively watching for the first time in 3 seasons for reasons which have nothing to do with the status of owed draft picks or lottery positioning.
The game itself was a mix of highlights, pensive tension due to a scrappy Nets team, and fast paced action. The game offered roughly 110 possessions, which is even a lot for two teams who love to get up and down and a ton for just a regular NBA game. Within that breakneck tempo, there wasn’t always the highest caliber of basketball — especially defensively — but there was plenty to cheer about from both teams.
From the Lakers side, much of that adulation goes out to D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle.
I’ve spilled plenty of digital ink in the last week talking about Russell’s play, about him trying to find his groove after a preseason which forecasted a breakout, about my want for him to get more aggressive in looking for his own offense. Russell didn’t waste any time in the latter, bombing away from distance to the tune of 4 early three pointers to go with a couple of assists to Mozgov for easy finishes. Russell stayed aggressive all night, finishing the night with 32 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists. He even got praise from Luke Walton for his ball pressure and defensive presence, which translated to 3 steals.
As for Randle, he continued his strong play by notching a 17/14/10 triple-double. Of those 10 assists, 7 in the 1st quarter (which started with him finding Russell during his early hot shooting), setting the tone early and helping to get the team off to a strong start. During the rest of the game he continued to make plays for others, but also showed off his patience when creating his own shot by eating up the space the defense was giving him with hard dribbles and then finishing inside after using his strength and touch around the rim.
Having Randle and Russell shine in the same game was a great sight and would typically mean the Lakers rolled. But, with just a 7 point win, that was not the case and mostly because other parts of the team didn’t play up to their normal standards. It’s just my luck that I write a glowing piece about the Lakers’ bench on the same day they happen to have one of their worst games of the year, but that’s how things go sometimes.
After the game Luke Walton said one of the key reasons the bench has been successful this year is that they move the ball well and the open man gets to shoot. He noted that against the Nets that wasn’t as prevalent and that things just seemed a bit “off” with them. Part of that was simply Lou Williams — a key driver to that unit’s offensive output — struggled all night and just couldn’t find a way to get his shot to fall. The other was that their defense, while still good, was not as active, as a group, as it typically is. Nance and Black were not as sharp in their rotations on the back line and that meant there were not as many opportunities to turn stops into baskets going the other way.
Ultimately, though, all of this just meant the the game was closer and more angst filled than it could have been if some of these things went the team’s way. The Lakers still found a way to win, though, mostly because of the aforementioned Randle and Russell, but also because guys like Clarkson (5 steals, 4 rebounds, 3 assists) and Ingram (6 4th quarter points, a key block late, good defense overall) found ways to contribute.
Now, onto some notes:
- After this game the Lakers are up to 9th in Offensive Efficiency, but have fallen into a tie for 19th in Defensive Efficiency for the season. There is fluctuation in these numbers, especially early in the season and teams have particularly strong or weak performances in either area. That said, the former number is fantastic and beyond what I would have imagined. And while the defensive number is not where I would like, if you would have told me the Lakers would have a top 20 defense before the season started I would not have believed you.
- In my game preview I noted how Brook Lopez always seems to play well against the Lakers and his 30 point, 10 rebound game was another data point in his favor. However, his impact was a bit more complicated to dissect than his plain numbers. First, he needed 25 shots to get his 30 points. 40% shooting from the field isn’t ideal from your starting C. However, he shot 7 three’s, making three of them, which helped his true shooting efficiency. Additionally, him roaming around the arc really drew Mozgov away from the rim and opened up driving lanes the Nets took advantage of all night. All of this is to say that I thought the style of play from Lopez was actually more important than his own production even though he had 30 and 10. If that makes sense.
- Kenny Atkinson can coach. The Nets play hard and play smart. They never let the game get away from them and offered good resistance to any run the Lakers made. They are a legitimately fun team.
- Luke Walton can coach some too, you know. When he saw the bench unit as a whole wasn’t working, he tweaked his sub patterns to get starters back in earlier than normal. The result was Randle and Russell playing over 30 minutes when they typically only play around 28.
- Props to Tarik Black. Dude plays hard and is relentless on the offensive glass. 5 of his 9 rebounds were on that end of the floor and he consistently bullied the Nets underneath to secure extra possessions. It helped that outside of Lopez the Nets don’t have really big guys to battle with, but still credit Black for getting into the right positions and using his wide frame to gobble up caroms.
Busboys4me says
Repost
The 2nd unit reminds me of the Bench Mob back in 2008-2010 seasons. They were an uptempo squad with Sasha and Farmar as the main gunners, Shannon Brown as the Uber athlete, Mbenga as the muscle and Lamar as the glue (engine) that made it work. Clarkson, Sweet Lou, Nance, Black and Ingram can be even better than those guys.
Both Lou and NickY had off nights shooting, that’s what really kept the game close. That and the lack of interior help defense.
KevTheBold says
Nice read Darius!
That was a scrappy game, and demonstrated how our team now has the drive to keep coming back.
It is good to see Randle and D’Angelo as a dynamic duo, and showcases their chemistry with one another.
I’m very proud of how Randle has become our backbone, and our strength.
Did you notice also when Boogie got into his face at the end of that Kings game, how Tarik, Deng and even Lou were there to back him up?
fern16 says
Darius you jinx the bench!! Next game write a glowing article about the Spurs please?haha. Good news is that even with the bench sputtering the Lakers still scored 125 points. Bad news is they allowed 118. That being said i totally agree that Coach Atkinson is very good. Our coach ain’t that bad either. That inbound pass to Clarkson that he cooked up was genius didn’t even crossed my mind, didn’t crossed the Nets minds either, and how he tweaked his personnel sub patterns in reaction of the coming and goings of the game were pretty good. From the other thread: Randle improvement, he worked his butt off in the summer and it shows. He is not totally there yet but he is using his right hand and shooting jumpers a lot more than last year. His improvement on both sides of the court is dramatic. I bet s lot of it has to do to the fact that the Byron/Kobe regime is gone and Hibbert too. Compared to Hibbert clogging up the post Mozgov is a gazelle and with the improved team shooting the offense is more fluid and spacious and give him the space to get to work. Remember how often played off Kobe because they didn’t fear his shooting anymore and coukd affird another defender roaming to help either in the perimeter or the post. Randle has become the engine of this team. And he still has a lot of room to grow. He doesn’t need to be the next Draymond or Lebron lite or whatever. He needs to be Julius. DAR was impresive last night. Let’s hope we get some consistency out of him. Finally, we have to go thru that murderous gauntlet the schedule is throwing at us. I don’t recall a stretch as murderous and perilous as this one, ever. Honestly i hope we are able to pick up a win, maybe 2 out of it. The important thing is how the team plays and react in the face of all the adversity that is coming our way. Regardless of the outcome we will still be at a better pace than last season which is all one can ask for at this point. That’s what this nice start has done for the team. GO LAKERS!!!!
KevTheBold says
With regards to the upcoming schedule,.. I just watched a video with Stephen Smith in which he said the next 7 games will decide if we are legit or not.
I disagree.
Though we are better than expected, we shouldn’t be expected to beat the best teams in the NBA just to prove that we still aren’t at the bottom of the heap.
Why dismiss beating the lower tier, and middle of the totem teams like Houston, and the Hawks and pin our status on beating the best?
We are improved, that is a fact, and ‘legit’ in that process, yet not a contender at this early stage.
Who in their right minds expects that of us?
MT87 says
KevTheBold What happened is all the prognosticators were wrong when they predicted this team would suck so now some of them are setting impossible standards for the immediate future to try to save face.
_DPeterson_ says
Happy to get the W.
We’re 15% of the way through the season. When can we declare Deng a Laker bust? He doesn’t seem to do anything. Is there something I’m missing, or is he just a really expensive scrimmage guy?
fern16 says
If we play even losing like we play on the 3 game losing skid to start the season, i be fine with it. It’s all about growth, and the Lakers are about to do some serious growing up. That’s what is all about at this stage. All those pundits are eating crow right now. Btw, i found this article and i think is an excellent read, coming from a writer that’s not a Laker fan by any stretch http://nypost.com/2016/11/16/the-8-steps-to-the-lakers-stunningly-quick-turnaround/?0p19G=c.
bluehill says
KevTheBold
Good points.
I just looked at those games. Wow. That is a tough stretch. I’ll be particularly interested in the games where we’re facing the teams for a second time. OKC got us pretty good the first time, but we’ve made a lot of progress since that game, so I think that’s one that we can get at home. GSW and ATL on the other hand are going to be fun. Both teams probably overlooked us so I’m not expecting that the second time.
bluehill says
fern16
In his first 2 years, Draymond Green averaged 2.9 and 6.2 pts/gm, shooting 32.7% and 40.7% and had a defense rating of 102 and 98.
In his first full year, Randle averaged 11.3 pts/gm, shooting 43.9% with a defense rating of 108. Early in this season, he’s at 14.2, 55.1% and 105.
Not saying that Randle will be as good as Draymond, but rather Draymond wasn’t
Draymond after year 2. Maybe the most promising thing from my perspective is that Julius is only 22, the same age as Green when he entered the NBA.
BigCitySid10552 says
-These team are legit. These kids are talented and their coach is proving to be quite knowledgeable & supportive. SEVEN victories already. Two games over .500 for the 1st time in years, and the beautiful part about it…they’re just starting to find out who they are as individuals and as a team.
– Who knows if the “superstar” comes from this group, or from free agency.
– Watching the Lakers is fun again. Enjoying the ride.
fern16 says
Draymond was a second round pick #35 to be exact, so he wasn’t as heralded or was put to start right away like Randle being a #7 pick in a supposedly loaded Draft. Nobody thought, Green was going to he this good. If Draymond’s career were the typical second rounder career the Warriors would be a good playoff team not much more. That was just dumb luck. Randle is going to be really good. Im goad he is shutting a lot of people up including in this forum.
fern16 says
Quietly Russell has rise his 3 percentage to 39%…
bluehill says
fern16 Yeah, I forgot about that. I hope that means Randle will be better!
Interesting thing about that 2012-13 GSW team, they also drafted Harrison Barnes that year with the 7th pick and he ended up being the starting SF. Overall, GSW draft that year was pretty good. Besides Green and Barnes, they also got Kent Bazemore and Festus Ezeli.
fern16 says
Thats why i been saying how tough the road ahead is. We are on the rise but expecting that this team has something to prove beating the very best of the NBA right away is asinine. Thats why Stephen A Smith is an idiot despite some good sound bites (His tirade on Kwame after the Gasol trade still makes me chuckle) We might pull a win here and there and make some of these teams work hard for their win but the Lakers aren’t a top tier team yet and is unfair to expect that. I like how the team has started and how is playing but i really doubt they will make the playoffs…
KevTheBold says
MT87
Thanks for the insight MT, that makes perfect sense.
KevTheBold says
bluehill
Agree Blue,.. it will be fun, and as long as we are competitive, I will mark that as progress and be happy with it.
KevTheBold says
fern16
Agree Totally Fern, and there has been payoff talk.
I assume they are trying to apply undue pressure to make us look silly when we fall short.
Feels like an attempt to bring down our fan base, as we all know that they love our misery.
Too bad for them, that most of us are too smart to fall for that child’s game.
We understand that it’s a process, and though we may skip some steps along the way, the kids still need to get tall enough to see above the dash board and reach the gas and brake pedals.
Mid Wilshire says
_DPeterson_ I understand your frustration with Deng. But it might be too early to declare anyone a bust. Afterall, it’s only been 12 games.
Remember last year? After 40 games, people were declaring DAR a bust. Same thing with Brandon Bass.
I consider Deng to be a SF equivalent of Bass. He’s a veteran, a real pro. His value is probably evident in ways that we don’t see. I still say he’ll figure things out. He’s very savvy. And it’s still very early in the season. Let’s give him a chance. I think he’ll be fine…just as Brandon Bass was last year.
Some times it takes a while to get rolling.
mattal says
I agree Deng is a concern. However, his signing was not without red flags. His stats have been in a downward trend for three years. He is a Thibs Bull alumnus — lots of miles/minutes. He was far and away a better player at the Four last season, in Miami, than at the Three.
A four year deal was never going to look pretty in years three and four. But even in my wildest dreams I never thought he would be this bad in year one. I hope Mid Wilshire is right and he has some game left.
If the kids all develop as we hope then carrying Deng’s contract is manageable even if it’s not ideal.
Mid Wilshire says
Below are some interesting stats courtesy of realgm.com:
Lakers’ starters — 25.5 minutes per game; Lakers’ bench – 22.5 mpg;
Lakers’ starters — 46.9% fg; Bench — 47.5% fg;
Lakers’ starters — 59.4 points per game; Bench — 50.6 ppg (#1 in the NBA)
Opponents’ starters — 75.0 ppg; Opponents’ bench — 33.4 ppg
Ppg differential / Lakers vs. Opponents’s starters — minus 15.6
Ppg differential / Lakers vs. Opponents bench — plus 17.2
There’s some noise in these statistics. For example, this is not a strict comparison of starters vs. starters and bench vs. bench. (Sometimes Clarkson and Lou play with the starters; sometimes Randle and Nance play together; etc.) Even so, this gives us a fairly good feel as to how the Lakers are performing this year and this sheds light on their relative strengths.
The Lakers bench, as we know, is (so far) really good. In fact, they’re killing it. The starters, on the other hand, have yet to jell. But the last game was a good sign.
And yet it’s still early. The next few games, I believe, should tell us a lot about the kind of team the Lakers have. I’m actually looking forward to the next stretch of games. I’d be surprised if they’re not looking forward to it, too.
_ Robert _ says
Last game was ideal. Not only a W, but the right guys played well. In fact some of our vets had bad games and the youngsters carried them.
Luke for COTY
PatrickStarr says
KevTheBold he’s sh*tting us when we lose to Wolves yet forgiving Warriors on the next sentence for losing to us because of second back to back while we also have a second back to back. Clearly there’s something wrong with his judgement
_DPeterson_ says
Slow start? For $16 mil a year? Why don’t you take January off and just tell your boss you’re slow playing 2017. See how that goes.