RAPTORS -at- LAKERS - 10-8-15 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

It’s Not Whether You Win Or Lose…Yet… It’s how the Lakers are playing the game. Tonight, the D was on its heels, giving up open looks from threes and dribble penetration in the 105-97 loss to the Raptors.

The Lakers returned from Hawaii with a couple bumps and bruises in early training camp. Both Russell and Bass joined Huertas watching from the sidelines. Some new faces in Robert Upshaw and Jonathan Holmes made their preseason debuts. Both had their moments.

The story again was Julius Randle imposing his will on opponents (17 points, 3 assists), Lou Williams able to score (19 points) no matter how often he is playing with different lineups, and Upshaw, who finally got his first run and first couple of shotblocks.

It’s a process and they seem to slowly be making some progress. The starters shot better and looked more on the same page. The transition D didn’t give up endless runouts.

Still, the half court D was often scrambled and not on the same page. With so many new parts and pieces, there’s a lot of catch up for this team to do.


Kobe -- -- There was a play early in the game I want to see from the Lakers with more consistency. Kobe and Clarkson ran a quick two-man scenario on the wing that got Clarkson’s man to switch on Kobe. Kobe then backed him down and it led to a layup for Clarkson as the D collapsed. Getting Kobe that switch for a post attack is how you want to attack from the post. It’s much more efficient then a straight post-your-man-up possession. D’Antoni used to try to run that for Kobe with regularity. Kobe has looked almost automatic in preseason when he gets those post mismatches on smaller men. If you want the D to keep gravitating and collapsing on Kobe, this is a good way to get some of those possessions. “It’s coming, it’s coming. I’m still kind of taste testing a few things,” Kobe said of his game. He said they need to do a better job staying in front of the ball defensively. The Stats: He scored 16 points on 5-11 shooting (2-6 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers and no fouls in 22 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He sank a top-of-the-key jumper to start the game. He missed a forced sideline three. Sweet halfcourt bounce pass to Nick for a layup. He got a switch onto Clarkson’s man, posted up, attacked, drew the D and fed Clarkson cutting for the layup. He missed a layup never getting full control of the ball off the pass in the paint. He threw a pass away as it hit the net. He cut and Hibbert found him from the high post for FTs under the hoop, he made both. His pass was deflected in transition, he got it back and drew FTs, he made both. He posted up, took the high-low from Hibbert and scored the turnaround. He airballed a three. He had 8 points on 2-5 shooting. Second Half: He missed a wing three short. He got a nice bounce on the corner three to drop. He was called for a travel on a spin move, don’t see that often. He took the outlet and powered in a layup on the break. He missed a wing jumper on iso. He swiped a ball from behind Scola and missed the three. Randle went behind his back at high speed to lose a defender and Kobe finished the highlight play with the wing three.

Clarkson -- -- This was a good early test for Clarkson and the team defensively. They struggled with it at times. The Raptors got to settle in, get good looks and get their confidence going. We had too little disruption with Lowry and Joseph. The Lakers didn’t contain the dribble and keep the ball out of the middle of the floor as Scott wanted. Good job moving the ball in this one. Without Russell out there we need Clarkson to distribute the ball more than with Russell on the floor. His best pass was a little one-handed shovel pass to Hibbert off the two-man game for a slam. He looked in control offensively throughout the game. “We’re getting comfortable in the offense,” Clarkson said. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 5-11 shooting (1-3 from three) to go with 4 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 24 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He attacked off the three line instead of settling and scored the short floater. Great cut into the paint as Kobe collapsed the D and Kobe found him for a layup. Nice job staying on his feet on D on the other end and forcing an airball on recovery. Quick pull up off the dribble handoff and he swished the long wing jumper. He missed a pull-up 15-footer off the high screen. He airballed a long pull-up jumper, but Randle cleaned it up. He swished a wing three on a catch and shoot. Then gave up a layup on the other end turning his head. He missed a floater but got it back to reset the offense. He had 9 points on 4-8 shooting. Second Half: He missed an open wing three off a dribble handoff from Randle. He swiped the ball from Lowry off the two-man D. He attacked from the wing and missed, got it back and hit the little floater. He drew the D on the two-man game and shoveled it to Hibbert for the dunk.

Randle -- -- He had some foul issues, picking up three early but fought through that to quietly lead the Lakers in scoring in the first half with an efficient 11 points on 4-5 shooting. Just another good game of imposing his will with his speed and power. He had the highlight play of game, pushing out a board, going behind his back at full speed to lose a reaching defender and then hitting Kobe for the open three. The 17 points in 23 minutes was efficient and probably would have been more like a 26-point, 27-point game with full minutes. In the pregame, James Worthy talked about some of the things he’s been teaching Randle. He wants him to wait for the picks, fake one way, go the other off them while working off ball. He wants Randle to work on ball fakes in the post, reposting, selling the up and under, and his drop-step footwork. He wants him to finish with the right hand more. He wants Randle changing gears in transition. And, he wants him not to hesitate on the jumpshot. Randle is a good student and hard worker. Look out when he gets there. The Stats: He scored 17 points on 7-10 shooting (3-4 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 3 assists, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 23 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He was called for a charge in transition, his third foul in 6 minutes and he had to sit. He sank a turnaround in the paint working out of the midpost. He attacked with speed on the catch and hit the baseline fade. He missed the 18-footer, didn’t hesitate, but also looked a little more rushed than needed. He drew FTs and made both. He drew more FTs crashing the glass, he made one. He was blocked out of bounds and wanted the whistle. He took the post feed, up-faked, and got a nice bounce to drop on the short one in the paint. He scooped up a loose ball crashing the glass and scored the layup. He had 11 points on 4-5 shooting and 2 boards. Second Half: He picked up his fourth foul biting on a jumpshot to start the half. He threw an inbounds off a Raptor and got it back. He took an inbounds on the other end and scored the layup at the front of the rim. He pushed it up quick to Clarkson, the D was still scrambling and Clarkson fed it back to him for a layup next time down. He attacked from the wing on iso and hit the short floater. He missed an elbow turnaround, should have just taken the face-up wing jumper to begin with. He missed a layup after Scola tried to reach on him (should have gone for the jam). He pulled down the defensive board, pushed it up at high speed, going behind his back to lose a defender, then fed Kobe for the three.

Hibbert -- -- Some good high post work in this game, particularly finding Kobe in the low post. If the D has to respect his shot, that opens up the paint nicely for Kobe. He swished a face-up jumper in this one. I want to see the guards set him up a little more for those elbow jumpers off the two-man game. He’s efficient on those and that will only open up the paint more everyone. Defensively, he had 3 blocks as we were constantly under duress around the rim. The team D was a little too loose. He and Upshaw combined for 5 blocks at the C spot. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-3 shooting to go with 5 boards, 2 assists, 3 blocks and 3 fouls in 23 minutes. He had a +/- of 0. The Action: He rejected a shot out of bounds on the first defensive stand. Quick drop-step in the post but he missed the finish. He swished a face-up 12-footer. Nice look to Kobe cutting for FTs. He found Kobe on a high-low pass in the paint for the score. Second Half: He dunked off the shovel pass from Clarkson.

Young -- -- Good job with the starters letting the game come to him, and very solid defensive performance against DeRozan who shot just 1-7 from the floor. Really, that was one of the few areas we looked good on D. “We’re just trying to play the game the right way,” Nick said. I’ll take an average game offensively from him if we can shut down an athletic scorer. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 3-8 shooting (1-4 from three) to go with 1 board, 1 assist and 1 foul in 28 minutes. He was a -10. The Action: He scored a layup off the halfcourt bounce pass from Kobe. He drained a wing three on a dribble handoff from Clarkson. He swished a pull-up jumper working off the high screen. He up-faked for the fly by and missed the three. Second Half: Nice help D challenge to force a miss. He missed a three on a kickout from Randle. He missed a wide open wing three. He missed a 15-footer. Nice drive and dish from the wing to Upshaw for FTs.

Williams – -- Once again, he led the team in scoring off the bench. Some quick attacks in this game off made baskets. He had the floater going, and of course was getting to the line on those perimeter leaners against his old team. Defensively, we had trouble staying on the same page with our bigs and the rotations. He’s got his work cut out for him on both ends, because Scott is running the starters with consistency. Lou is running with a range of new players every game. That ain’t easy. It’s certainly not effecting his ability to score, though. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 6-15 shooting (2-7 from three, 5-7 from the line) to go with 1 board, 2 assists, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 24 minutes. He had a +/- of 0. The Action: Great read spotting Upshaw free under the hoop after he set a screen for Nick and it led to a dunk. He drew FTs off the dribble while probing off a screen, he made both. He swished a turnaround in a crowd on the wing. He drew FTs on a two-for-one three attempt, he made two. He missed a three holding for the last shot of the quarter. Second Half: He knocked down a sideline three after kicking out to Metta. He missed a floater. He missed a wing jumper at the end of the quarter. He missed a wing jumper, we got it back to him and he hit the corner three. He was called for a push off foul, he then drew a clear-out on the other end to get it back. He split the double and hit the floater in the paint. He threw a pass away getting caught in the air in the corner. He airballed a wing three trying to beat the shotclock over a couple players. He missed a wing three. He drew FTs pulling up on the perimeter, he made one. He got tapped on a wing three. Quick attack off the made basket and he scored a layup. Quick attack with Bennett injured and he hit the floater to cut it to 4. He got tapped on a floater. He missed a tough corner three.

Upshaw -- -- I feel like I need to pick up the intensity, set harder screens, rebound the ball and block shots,” Upshaw said, mentioning he was talking a lot with the guards because he didn’t have a lot of experience defending the two-man game in college. Defensively, you could see a lot of discussion with him and the guards after breakdowns. “I didn’t do a lot of thinking before, just a lot of acting,” Upshaw said on the floor. Hard not to pull for him. His issues with substance abuse and, well, trust side tracked his promising college career. Teams passed him up in the draft. The Lakers gambled that they can help him to do the right thing when no one is watching. A big paycheck is on the line for Robert, here’s hoping he can stick to the right path. He played few minutes in the summer league. Since then, he’s dropped a lot of weight and kept his eyes on the prize. He got his first NBA preseason minutes tonight as the back-up C. He showed a nice touch on his shot and that shotblocking presence. He was mobile on both ends. He was very quick to set the picks, although they could have been a little stickier as he mentioned after the game about setting harder picks. He’s got good instincts but needs experience. “He made a ton of mistakes on both ends of the floor, which is probably to be expected because it’s his first game,” Scott said. He said he and Holmes need more reps on the floor to understand the systems better. Well, give it to them. Upshaw had more notes below than Sacre or Black at backup C. That’s a sign of his activity. There’s a lot of potential here, so hopefully he can get more preseason minutes and make the team before he’s likely out of the rotation for a while. It feels like Scott is going to lean more toward a vet at back up C, but you never know. “His upside is amazing,” Worthy said. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-4 shooting (0-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 25 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: A couple seconds after entering the game, he set a baseline screen to free up Nick and Williams whipped the pass to Upshaw instead for the dunk when the Raptor D got confused. He missed an elbow jumper off a spin. He sank a tough turnaround on the baseline with a man all over him. He fumbled a pass twice before finally losing it. He goaltended a jumphook on help D. He rejected a layup on help D. Nice up move from the baseline and he drew a foul on a drive. Second Half: He gathered a tough pass from Metta in the paint, spun and scored the layup. He was hacked on a drive and dish from Nick, he missed both (should have finished the layup). He grabbed an offensive board and kicked to Lou for the three. He swatted a drive on help D.

World Peace -- – He was most effective in the post and getting into the interior to pass off or draw fouls. “I’ve been away for two years, so mentally there’s some basketball stability that has to sink…I’ve got to get stable mentally as far as my thought process and being away so long,” Metta said. Physically, he said he feels fine and put in a lot of work. He said there was a lot of work physically they put in before the game tonight even after coming in late at night. He’s not knocking down the three’s, really like the rest of the team and the tired legs are still likely in play. He didn’t have quite the same edge to his game as the last one. The team as a whole was probably a little tired. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 1-6 shooting (0-3 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a -10. The Action: He hit Jabari for a three. He missed an open wing three. He missed a double-clutch turnaround in the post. He attacked, threw a blind pass away, then fouled in the backcourt. Second Half: He missed a tough leaner pulling up on the wing. He hit Upshaw with an interior feed for a score. He missed a corner three. He posted up and drew FTs, he made both. He posted up and drew FTs, he made both. He found Holmes with an interior feed for FTs. He overpowered Powell on a drive down the paint for a layup. He missed a rushed three from the wing after getting the offensive board.

J. Brown -- -- He had some moments on both ends tonight and at least no train wreck stretches. Right now he’s on the bubble, it would seem. The injuries to Russell and Huertas are giving him the minutes. He needs to show more while he can. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-3 shooting (1-3 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 1 board, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 20 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He bricked a corner three. He got tapped on a wing jumper. He sank a three off a swing pass. Second Half: He charged on the pick and roll (wasn’t looking to pass on that at all). He slapped a ball off an offensive player to get the stop. Aggressive attack in transition and he drew FTs, he made one.

Nance -- -- He split time with Holmes in this game. Both rebounded the ball well, combining for 11 boards in 25 minutes. Nance showed a little mobility going around his man for a layup, but still seems to be getting his bearings out there. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-1 shooting (1-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 1 assist and 2 fouls in 11 minutes. He was a -10. The Action: He was fouled on a pinch post handoff for FTs, he made one. Quick attack to his right from the FT line and he went around his man for a layup. He should have tried to finish a lob from Clarkson at the end of the half but overpassed. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Holmes -- -- He finally got some minutes on the floor and looked more comfortable than Nance and a few others. It was said the Lakers were high on Holmes before camp. He did a good job hitting the boards and had a nice recovery block on a guard. Offensively, he didn’t seem very comfortable yet, but hopefully he gets some longer stretches of ball. Scott mentioned both he and Upshaw were making a lot of mistakes. They tried to set him up for a three out of a timeout. Hopefully, he’ll get a few more good looks because he has a soft touch. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-4 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 6 boards (2 offensive), 1 block and 2 fouls in 14 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He did not play in the half. Second Half: He hesitated on a three, attacked and was blocked. He missed a wing three out of a timeout. He pulled down a missed FT and reset the offense. He was fouled trying to power up off the interior feed from Metta, he made both FTs. He grabbed an offensive board and powered in the layup. He couldn’t finish a layup under some pressure. Great recovery on Joseph on a switch and he blocked him from behind (earlier in the game he had given up an easy layup when they were mismatched).

Scott -- -- Apparently, the team put in some work before this game, even after coming in late last night… The Lakers were clicking on both ends to start and forced a timeout with a 10-2 lead… He brought in Nance for Randle who picked up three quick fouls… He brought in Upshaw, Peace, Williams to go with Nance and Young, Lakers up 2 with 5 minutes left… Jabari in for Nick, Lakers up 3… The Lakers trailed 30-27 after the first quarter… He started the same unit in the second quarter… After a minute and half, he brought back Kobe, Randle, and Hibbert for Upshaw, Nance and Metta down 2… Clarkson back in for Lou… Young in for Jabari… Metta in for Kobe with 5 minutes left, score tied… Lakers down 1 with less than 3 minutes left and he went with Upshaw, Nance, Metta, Jabari and Lou… The D was too loose in the half court, giving up some open looks… The Lakers trailed 59-53 at the half. Just 4 turnovers for the Raptors and 5 for the Lakers… Down 9, he sat Clarkson for Lou… Upshaw in for Hibbert… Metta in for Kobe shortly later, probably the last we see of Kobe as Scott wanted to hold him between 18-22 minutes… He sat Julius for Holmes, who takes Nance’s rotation from the first half… The Lakers trailed 86-76 heading into the fourth… Same unit to start the second quarter with the change of Jabari for Young… Clunky offense with this unit. They don’t know what their strengths are… The Lakers cut it to 6 with under 3 minutes left… The Lakers shot 7-27 from three, the Raptors 10-21. That was probably the difference there…

[dcarter4kobe]

first?
_________________
"He's a Zen master, so he can speak to you, and he doesn't need a microphone; you can hear him in your head, 'Ron, don't shoot, don't shoot.' Whatever, pow, three. I love the Zen, though."

[SweetP]

Thanks DB,
I see hints of improvement and hope for the season.
_________________
“There is always light if only we're brave enough to see it, if only we're brave enough to be it.” --Amanda Gorman

[Andre2K]

Upshaw is right about making his screens stickier. He is a good prospect for sure, I'm pulling for him.

Randle looking more comfortable out there, he played brilliantly tonight and looks like he is ready to go when the season starts.

Clarkson is playing a bit different this preseason he is not really exerting his will out there, maybe because he was going against a veteran like Lowry but I would love to see him in attack mode more, he had a good game.

Nance need to show more out there, he had a nice drive to the lane but besides that he hasn't really impressed me like he did with his all out hustle in game one of summer league
_________________
My Dream Starting 5 next Season

Pg Lonzo
Sg Kawhi
Sf Ingram
Pf Lebron
C Dedmon

Bench: Caruso, Hart, Bullock, Kuzma, McGee etc

[Shaber]

Scott is testing the second and third lineups ( ), it is going to be all different in the regular season.

I am utterly disappointed in Black. He can not even break into rotation
_________________
.

Lakers depth chart

PG Johnson / Goodrich
SG Bryant / West / Scott
SF Baylor / Worthy / Cooper
PF Mikkelsen / Hairston / McAdoo / Gasol
C Chamberlain / Abdul-Jabbar / O'Neal / Mikan

[OregonLakerGuy]

Thanks DB

[KeepItRealOrElse]

Thanks DB, first 2 pre-season games i didn't watch the 2nd unit much but could come in this thread and get the run down. tonight i had to watch Upshaw, and he looked so much better than SL , looked promising for sure.
MWP was horrible IMO, offensively at least. Trying to draw contact on every iso and throwing up wild bricks, or getting stuck and barely finding a pass to make. He did say that the team ran sprints last night or this morning though, i believe. Christ.

[Lakers#1Team]

Thanks DB!

[DShotMaker1824]

謝謝, DB!!!

Learning Chinese. So please bear with me here sometimes.
_________________

"Through the legs to the left, through the legs to the right, we don't run them Laker plays, we just Kobe fadeaway..."

[Sina]

Thanks DB!

[LakerDYnasty72]

DB, we appreciate you man. Thanks!

[A Mad Chinaman]

If this is a transition year (especially with NBA-TV (MDA/Greg Anthony predicting they will get less than 30 wins), it would seem likely that they will keep Upshaw. Black presently is not making an impact on the game like a Ben Wallace and Sacre fulfilling the role of Celtics' M.L. Carr - that would needlessly be taking a roster spot

MWP could teach intangible qualities needed to be a championship-caliber player - intensity, focus, drive and determination

Looking forward to seeing Huertas play that would allow Lou Williams play SG, while potentially having Swaggy as a SF backup.

Starting lineup of Hillard, Randle, Kobe, Clarkson and Russell have four guys that can immediately bring the ball upcount in a hurry

Lou and Swaggy leading the 2nd team appears to have the offense slowdown considerably because Swaggy is a Black Hole - offensively. If Upshaw can be any kind of offensive force, it will open up the court for the shooters