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A Lakers Blog. Thoughts, reflections, and the odd rant on the Los Angeles Lakers and the NBA (even the Clippers).

Preview and Chat: Lakers vs. Spurs

by


In their first game after the All-Star break, the Lakers lost by a double digit margin to the Thunder in OKC. While the final score wasn’t pleasant, there were a few things I did like about the game. The team competed until the end and showed some defensive spirit in the 4th quarter. D’Angelo Russell was aggressive all game, posting an 11 point 5 assist 1st half and then pouring in 18 more points in the second half.

Russell’s game was a reminder of how much of a natural scorer he can be, hitting shots from all three levels (even though he shot especially poorly from behind the arc). It was encouraging to see Russell get into the paint and finish, something I’d like to see become a more permanent part of his game rather than the once-every-five-game affair it’s been this year. I’d also like to see him continue to find that balance between scorer and playmaker – after a 1st half with 5 assists, he only had 1 helper in the 2nd half. Don’t get me wrong, I’d rather Russell skew aggressive than not and if that means his assist numbers suffer, but he scores well, I’m okay. But this speaks to why I want him in the game and getting reps in every and all types of game situation.

There were other things to like about Friday’s game, too. I thought Clarkson passed better (5 assists) and played some good defense on Westbrook late (even if Russ still hit shots). Zubac was very good early offensively, though his opportunities tailed off later in the game. I also liked how Walton played the Nance/Randle pairing late in the game and closed with them flanked by Russell, Clarkson, Ingram. This group didn’t stand out and their efficiency numbers were bad, but I want them to have their opportunities to figure out if they can actually mesh or not. No better time to get data on that than now.

Which leads us to today’s game vs. the Spurs. We all know what San Antonio is. They are the Borg. The continue to roll on, regardless of change, defeating whoever stands in their way. Resistance is futile. So, I don’t expect the Lakers to win this game. They are overmatched in every metric, but especially in the areas of talent and experience. So, yeah, I’m not expecting a good result in this game. But that does not mean there aren’t things I’m looking to get out of this game.

I want to see Russell aggressive. I want to see Clarkson continue to get ball handling duties and, with those, show some desire to be a set up man. I want to see Randle/Nance play more minutes together. I want Ingram to continue to be assertive offensively and push the ball after attacking defensive rebounds. And I want more lineups with those 5 players together and ones where Zubac replaces either Nance or Randle to see how he does with that super young group. The last 20+ games need to be about growing these groups together and seeing how they can build their games off each other, if they can do it all.

This may not lead to many wins. And, as we know, that has some benefit to the Lakers’ lottery odds even if I’m not a huge fan of how much all that losing impacts the players. Especially when they were so bad last year too (and the year before that). But these are the lumps rebuilding teams often take and without a really good (i.e. star level) veteran to lean on while these guys are still developing, losing is going to happen more often than anyone would really like.

With that, I hope today’s game is competitive and I hope to see some positives from those games within the game that I mentioned above. Those are markers for positive steps forward for some of these young players which, at this point, is all the season is about.

Where you can watch: 12:30pm start time on Spectrum Sportsnet.


Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. FredP says

    I am not as concerned about Clarkson’s assist numbers. He played alongside two of the game’s best shot creators in Kobe and Lou. Passing them the ball would lead to baskets but only after they made one of their patented moves. Clarkson’s bright spot for assists occurred after Kobe’s injury and the Lakers for awhile did not have a great shot creator.

  3. KevTheBold says

    “The Borg” Lol,.. apt description !
    This is an interesting time we are going through.
    The kids are trying to impress Magic, who is so much more hands on the basketball court, than Jimmy, and even Mitch. I have seen the videos with him wearing his sweats and talking intensely with Walton on the court.
    Then on the other side, the pressure to win has dwindled, or it should as we steer for that chance at a draft pick.
    Needless to say that even trying their best, they will lose most games,.. so both goals work in tandem, and I for one won’t allow losses to bother me as long as there is effort and progress, which Magic may influence.

  4. LKK says

    We all know that the Spurs are elite and way better than the Lakers. Still it’s disappointing to see how readily the players from LA accept that fact. The Spurs look like they’re at their morning shootaround. No pressure at all from the young Lakers.

  5. Fern says

    Ingram had an excellent game, his best as a pro! I get exited because this wasn’t against some bottom feeder team. It was against a contender!!! Russell and Clarkson played pretty good too!! We are going lose a ton of games but we will see these guys improve and develop. Give them a ton of minutes!!!

  6. fern says

    Russell needs to go to the foul line. He is scoring bit he isn’t aggressive enough. He needs to draw fouls. No FTs attempts tonight? On a side note, what’s with the site? I have to put all the info in everytime i want to comment.

    • Moto says

      I agree w u regarding all of the info required to post a comment. Total bs. Was told it would change several months ago but no change.

      • Darius Soriano says

        The only requirement to post a comment is that you have had a comment approved previously. If you find this too harsh, find a new site to comment at or volunteer to review every comment which is comes into the queue.

        Related, the previous commenting network through livefyre is no longer supported by their tech support so it has gone away. If you have a better idea for filtering comments, please share it. Short of that, please stop your complaining. Thanks and goodbye.

        • Vasheed says

          Is this the old board format? It’s been a while! 😉 I don’t remember having to re-enter my info on the old board but, I’m fine with it if it keeps down spam. I’m going to miss the Like button.

        • Terrets says

          Darius- many of us here continue to appreciate your tireless efforts and commitment to the site (NOT saying Moto does not – just making a general comment).

    • Renato Afonso says

      DAR’s game doesn’t generate a lot of FT’s. If you’re looking for the assist all the time and don’t have a quick first step, it becomes harder to generate fouls. I don’t think that will be an issue as long as others attack the rim.

  7. KevTheBold says

    Breakthrough game from Ingram, not a bad game from D’Angelo, the rest of the team however,.. non existent. If this keeps up, I can see Randle being traded at seasons end.

    • Vasheed says

      Randle disappears against traditional big Power Forwards. He does very well though against more modern ones. He also rebounds really well. I sometimes wonder what would happen if Randle focused on being the best rebounder he could be. Like Rodman with an actual offensive game to boot instead of trying to become Draymond Green.

      • KevTheBold says

        I see your view, and wonder as well,…though it seems, that in his mind,.. he’s much more; and maybe he’s right, who knows?
        I wonder how Magic will see it,..though, that depends upon where he stands, at seasons end, so he’s still got time, as does all our core, none of which, has carved out a solid spot for themselves, as of yet, imo that is.

  8. Chris J says

    I’m personally happy to see the end of livefyre. I liked the old (and again current) commenting system better. Pleasant surprise to see it back.

    • rr says

      Well, the old format didn’t have a reply option, and this one does not have the “like” option. But this is more similar to the old one.

  11. Darius Soriano says

    One of the benefits of livefyre was the decrease in spam comments and being able to avoid having those impersonators who would come in and mimic someone else and post inappropriate things. I’ll need to be more vigilant to root those things out. We’ll see how it goes.

    • Darius Soriano says

      Additionally, one of the other benefits was no delay in getting comments through and posted. We will now be going back to the old way where some comments are held for moderation by the key word recognizer that is inherent to wordpress sites. There’s really little I can do about this, so your patience is appreciated. If folks want to volunteer to moderate comments or periodically check on whether comments are being held, please let me know. Just email me at the link at the top of the page.

  13. mattal says

    One of the issues the Lakers will need to address is the lack of shooting from their forwards. Here is a summary, in a overall percentage/3pt percentage/free throw percentage::
    Deng: .386//.309/.73
    Randle: .483/.222/.70
    Nance: .548/.154/.72
    Ingram: .372/.299/.65
    Robinson: .525/0/.43
    You can throw out any concerns about Ingram because he’s still on his rookie year learning curve. But, everyone else is a huge question mark. Deng’s legs are shot — not a surprise that his signing was a huge mistake. Robinson is a peripheral player so his stats are a non-issue. Which leaves us with Randle and Nance who are looked at being core pieces moving forward. The problem is that neither of them have any range outside of the key. This is an issue given that the game today relies upon spacing and range. You can hide one player with little or no range, but virtually all of the minutes at the Four spot can’t shoot outside the paint.
    I suspect that Randle get’s one more year since he does have skills (rebounding and ball handling) and should the Lakers keep their pick the top players are in the back court or on the wing. Could Nance be viewed as trade bait at the draft or over the summer? While I like Larry Jr., I would view moving him now as selling high. His injury history (missed 17 games last year and 19 so far this year) and lack of shooting are big ifs going forward.

    • R says

      Moving L Nance Jr may not be sell high because his injuries and lack of outside shooting are surely as obvious to other FOs as they are to us fans.

      • mattal says

        Re: Nance: There’s always a GM who thinks, ‘We can change him.’

        He’s not a bad player its just that on the Lakers he’s somewhat redundant with Randle.

    • Chutch says

      Our inability to spread the floor due to the extreme hesitancy of our PFs to shoot from beyond the arc has greatly hindered our guards growth. It’s allowed defenses to clog the lane. Has allowed defenses to overplay seemingly every pass attempt leading to a ton of turnovers.
      Their lack of shooting is preventing the team from running the pace and space offense that Luke claims he wants to run. If open, our PFs need to shoot the ball from beyond the arc without hesitation regardless of their %.

      DAR and JC would absolutely be thriving if the Lakers would actually spread the floor.
      I love both Nance and Randle, great dudes with great work ethic, dynamic teammates but it is their limited offensive abilities that IMO have kept us from playing the style of ball and quite frankly, of being the team we had hoped they’d be.

  14. mattal says

    Testing a post. I think a previous one is either lost due to my user error or its stuck in moderation. .

  17. Mid-Wilshire says

    I think the player who will benefit the most from the trade of Lou Williams will be Jordan Clarkson. Obviously, it’s only been 2 games. But since Lou’s exit, JC has had games in which he scored 14 points (6-17 shooting) against OKC and 19 points (8-16) against San Antonio. I really liked his floor game against OKC (5 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals) and his defense against Westbrook.
    He’ll be one to keep an eye on as the season progresses.
    It looks like Luke is still going to keep him coming off the bench. But I would like to see him play more minutes with Russell. I still say that could be the Lakers’ backcourt of the future.

  18. bluehill says

    F’in Lou Will. Doing his best to devalue our pick. The man can score. I’m sure there are a couple of other teams that wishing they paid up now. Oh well, we got a 1st round pick.

    • FredP says

      8-15, 5-10 (3s), 28 pts, +/- -13 , Houston loss. That is why there was not a better market. Lou puts up the resistance of a traffic cone on defense. The Pacers were ruthless in going after him when they had the ball.