LAKERS -at- BLAZERS – 10-18-18 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 11:07 pm    Post subject: LAKERS -at- BLAZERS – 10-18-18 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

Opening Night… “This is a marathon for us, alright? It’s a new mindset now. Get that through your head,” LeBron said in the huddle before they broke to start the game.

It definitely feels like we aren’t going to be sprinting out of the gates. When most people saw this game on the schedule to open the season, I think they chalked it up as a Laker loss. Road game in Portland, who have won 17-straight home openers? Forget it.

The Lakers played a spirited three quarters. They built a small lead early, lost it by the end of the first quarter, fell back further in the second quarter as Nik Stauskas had a career night, then reeled the Blazers in by halftime. Despite missing their first 15 threes, the Lakers were right there.

“They were good shots. We’re going to keep taking those,” Luke said of the missed threes.

They dominated the break (34-12) and relentlessly scored in the paint. The pace was intense at times. By the end of the night, they’d finish with 70 points in the paint and 48% shooting. But going 7-30 from three hurt. So did giving up 14 offensive boards. Three shooting and second chances are what you want if you’re a team these days. We were on the wrong side of both of those.

Afterwards, most stressed the need for gang rebounding and improvement on the defensive side. The Lakers gave up 35 points in the fourth on their way to the 128-119 loss.

One of the worries about this team was the perimeter shooting, but tonight was ridiculous. I doubt you see them shoot blanks for that long from three the rest of the season. The bigger worry might be the defensive rebounding and small ball. If we go with Kuzma as the backup center like we did all night, we’re probably asking for trouble. Luke will likely stick with it for a while putting more emphasis on cracking back on the defensive glass as a team. Next game is going to be tough, as well. Hopefully, we see improvement.


LeBron -- -- He opened his scoring as a Laker with back-to-back dunks that had Laker fans in Portland going nuts. He scored 18 of his 26 in the first half. The shot chart is probably all makes from around the rim. When he’s got a head of steam and the D isn’t set in transition, they’re in trouble. No stopping him. He didn’t hit any of the four attempts from three. There was very little chemistry on the floor in the half court. This was reflected a bit in LeBron’s 6 turnovers. Some passes going out of bounds or lobs not there. He’s lost all four of his first games with new teams. They’ll get better and LeBron’s passing in the half court will start picking teams apart more. The shooting around him will also improve. He said he liked the way they competed and fought their way back. He said they needed to do a better job on the boards and those turnovers. “It takes a while for where the chemistry gets to where you can close your eyes and know exactly where your guys are,” LeBron said. Unfortunately, they will be playing a lot of teams that have some idea of what they want to do. We’ll be playing catch up for a while before getting to that point with our chemistry. The Stats: He scored 26 points on 9-16 shooting (0-4 from three, 8-9 from the line) to go with 12 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 6 turnovers and 3 fouls in 37 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: He hit BI for a layup over the smaller, fronting defender. He swiped an inbounds pass and took it the distance for a dunk. After we gave up a dunk, we quickly inbounded and he took it for another dunk (Laker fans in Portland going nuts). He missed a runner off the two-man game. He pushed it out, skipped through the D and scored an And-1 layup, he made the FT. He drew FTs on the feed from Ingram in transition, he made both. He outmuscled a man in the paint for a putback layup. He scored another putback. He hit Hart cutting for FTs. He was fouled with no call and missed the layup. He posted up and drew FTs (thought he was passing, but he walked to the FT line), he made both. His pass was picked off and he picked up his second foul in transition D. He missed a turnaround in the paint. He missed a wing three. LeBron picked up his third on a push under the hoop. He grabbed the McGee block and pushed it down court for FTs, he made one. He hit McGee in transition for the slam. He cut weakside and Rondo found him for the layup. He had 18 points on 6-10 shooting, 7 boards and 3 assists in the first half. Second Half: His lob pass was picked off. He missed a wing three. He fumbled a pass way. He pushed it up and hit Ingram for the layup. His lob pass to Lonzo was picked off. He missed an open three. He threw a behind-the-back pass out of bounds expecting Kuzma to pop instead of roll. He had the D backing up in transition after pushing out a board and took it for a layup. Quick attack in transition to manufacture FTs, he made both. He attacked in transition, spun and scored a layup. He missed a wing three. He scored a layup off an interior feed. He threw a pass out of bounds.

Ingram -- -- Let’s start with the good first. Defensively, he was very disruptive out there. He had 2 blocks and 2 steals, but several other disruptive plays that don’t show up in the stat sheet. That’s what we want to see. He and McGee have been very disruptive on D. Lonzo will join them as the season goes along. On the bad side, he had some good looks at three in this one and didn’t knock them down. He’s got to hit those shots for a variety of reasons. He’s not going to get all those calls he got in the preseason. A lot of those were refs sending a message about freedom of movement, but it seems like in most of the games to start the season the refs have backed off that a ton. So don’t expect those DWade like freethrow numbers like he was getting. LeBron was definitely looking to help BI get on track from the start. Once those two get more minutes under their belt, we’ll get some easier points for BI. The Stats: He scored 16 points on 7-15 shooting (0-4 from three, 2-4 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and no fouls in 28 minutes. He was a +4. The Action: He fumbled away a ball on the first trip down. He took the high entry against a smaller defender and scored a layup. He missed a three trailing the break. He missed an open corner three. Nice post help to save Kuz and get a stop. High board and quick outlet to LBJ for FTs. Good job using his length to knock down a pass and ignite a break. He missed an elbow pull-up. He stripped or blocked Lillard on one end and took it for a layup on the other. He missed an open corner three. He missed a pull-up 15-footer and a follow tip attempt. He stripped a guard to ignite a break on the other end. Good challenge at the rim to get a stop. Second Half: He attacked in early offense and scored a layup over a couple defenders. He banked in a long pull-up wing jumper, bricked it in basically. He no-looked to McGee for FTs. He iso’d and hit the pull-up wing jumper. He missed an elbow pull-up (should have leaned in to draw the foul). He drew FTs on a tough turnaround on iso, he missed both. He rattled in a turnaround in the paint. He scored a layup taking a pass from LeBron on the break. He drew three defenders in the post in early offense and hit McGee cutting for the dunk. He forced his man into an airball from three. He attacked in transition and drew FTs, he made both. He drew a push off foul on McCollum. He missed a wide open corner three.

Rondo -- -- He had 10 points on 5-8 shooting and 6 assists in the first half. Luke pulled both Rondo and LeBron off the court at the same time in the first half and things went sideways fast. In the second half, he altered that to leave one of them on the court at all times. At this point in the team’s development, you have to do that. We just don’t have enough collective experience to organize the offense into something intelligent for long stretches without them. It will improve with time. Rondo led the team with 11 assists. He was a little frustrated with some of his turnovers (he had 3). He wasn’t on the same page for sure at times, but also got caught in bad positions on occasion. He was 1-2 from three, so no problems from him there. He had 4 boards but our guards need to do a better job of boxing out. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 6-13 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 4 boards, 11 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 6 fouls in 32 minutes. He was a +7. The Action: He attacked and reversed for the Lakers first score. He attacked off the three line and banked in a layup. He lost a dribble pushing it up. He threaded a bounce pass to Kuzma rolling to the lane for a layup. He missed a drive. He missed a fading bank in transition. He spotted LeBron cutting weakside for a layup. He pushed up the break and fed Hart for the layup. He scored a layup off the hesitation. He faked the behind-the-back pass, froze the D and scored a layup. He let an inbounds roll up court, then picked it up and quickly attacked for a layup high off the glass to get a two-for-one. Second Half: He choked a layup to start the half. He missed a corner three having to step back. He stripped the ball from Lillard, pushed it out and threw it away. He drew a charge in transition. He sank an open wing three when the D went under. He attacked, took contact and lost the ball. He threw a post entry out of bounds when he and Ingram weren’t on the same page. He attacked and threw it away. He hit LeBron for a layup.

McGee -- -- One of the guys who has fit in on both ends quickly this season, JaVale started the season off with a strong effort, continuing from his great preseason. He just fits. Too bad we don’t have two of him. I hate to depend on Zubac and Moe, but man, we really need to Moe to show this season with how this team is built. Hopefully, he can tag team with McGee as a couple of bigs who run the floor and hustle. Some excellent sequences of making things happen defensively and changing ends with speed by McGee. If he gets the ball with any kind of runway, it’s trouble for the opposition. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 5-6 shooting (3-4 from the line) to go with 8 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 3 blocks and 3 fouls in 22 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: He attacked the perimeter pressure and dunked. He swiped a ball with a reach. He got hit in the head with no call on a reverse. He threw down a lob dunk. He blocked a shot on the other end. He tracked down Lillard and rejected his drive on one end, then threw down a dunk on the break on the other. Backscreen on LeBron’s man to free LeBron up for a feed from Rondo (the vets teaming up there). He tapped out an offensive board and Hart took it for a layup. Second Half: He missed an elbow jumper on a busted play. He was fouled on the offensive glass to earn FTs, he made both. He drew FTs on an interior feed, he made one. He got caught in no-man’s land and gave up a lob. He cut off Ingram in the paint, took the feed and jammed. He blocked a drive.

Caldwell-Pope -- -- Horrible game from KCP. He was rarely comfortable out there. Both his misses were on wild attempts. We need him to be a steady perimeter threat. Some of that is on the coaching and team to gel offensively. When he doesn’t know what he’s doing (like early last year), he has some real head scratcher moments out there. He was pretty much a ghost out there. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 1-3 shooting (1-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 2 boards and 1 foul in 27 minutes. He was a +8. The Action: He drew a push off foul in transition, flopping a bit to get the stop. He was fouled on a cut for FTs, he made both. Second Half: Wild drive and he missed badly. He forced up and airballed a wild corner three, just awful out of a timeout. He sank a wing three in transition.

Ball -- -- He had the team low -15 in the first half, while Rondo had the team high +13. We shuttled out all starters and the bench had little chemistry to start Lonzo’s stint. That didn’t work so well and Lonzo didn’t impose himself at all. In the second half, we mixed up the rotations a little better. Still, he seemed to be a non-factor out there a little too much. He said he was a little winded still. “That’s my third game in five months,” he said. He relies on that constant motor to really make his impact, so we’ll need to give him some time. He’s still on a minutes restriction. He mentioned the problem with the boards after the game. Hopefully, we see him back there gobbling them up like he can. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 2-7 shooting (1-4 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 19 minutes. He was a -15. The Action: He missed a wing three. He hit Stephenson for a jumper. He missed an open wing three. Second Half: He iso’d on Curry and drew FTs backing him down, he made both. He missed a putback on the break, got it back and scored. Way short on a wing three. Weak foul on a strip in the paint. He swished a wing three. He attacked the paint and was blocked next time down.

Kuzma -- -- A lot of backup C in this one. I want to ask why, but we just built the roster this way. So backup C tonight, he was it instead of Zu. “We had a couple good stretches,” Kuzma said of the small ball (overall, he was a -12). He looked a little better at trying to take advantage of his speed on the offensive end in those situations, but it’s just a tough ask defensively. We need to get a lot more help from everyone on the glass. Last year, we had Ball, Hart and KCP all getting double-digit rebounding games. Those guys are really going to have to get after it in our small ball and help out. Offensively, Kuzma struggled from three, making just 1-7. The question is whether he can battle with bigs, run the floor and still have his legs for the three ball. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 5=15 shooting (1-7 from three, 4-5 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 29 minutes. He was a -12. The Action: He rolled to the hoop and Rondo threaded a bounce pass to him for a layup. He gave up a putback to the C. He got it back on the other end with a fast cut and pivot around the trailing big to score a layup. He was fouled on a wing three, he made two of the three FTs. He got caught having to pick up his dribble early and missed the tough runner off glass. He missed a sideline three. He threw a kickout away. Quick baseline attack and he scored a layup. He threw an outlet away. He missed a deep three in early offense. Second Half: He missed a wing three in early offense. He changed ends quickly off the Hart steal and Josh hit him for the breakaway dunk. He grabbed a board, pushed it up and missed the layup. He swiped a feed but couldn’t finish (Lonzo eventually cleaned it up). He up-faked and was blocked on the drive (picked up his dribble early again). He was blocked from behind on a three. He missed an open three. He was fouled at the rim on the screen-roll with LeBron, he made both FTs. He drained a three trailing the break. He missed a late chuck from three.

Hart -- -- If you are looking at the Hart vs. KCP battle for who should start, tonight was a K.O. by Josh. Wasn’t even close. Our lone perimeter threat tonight. You’ve got to have that on court with your passers. We saw BI fail on his open attempts and that hurt. If you watched any of the Sixers game prior to this, you could see the D completely sagging off Fultz to dare him to shoot and help elsewhere. You’d then see Simmons not passing to him despite being open. We don’t want defenders being able to pack the paint against LeBron. That’s what teams will do to us if we build a rep for not being a shooting team. Hopefully, we bounce back and don’t build a rep as a team that can’t shoot and can’t rebound. Hart being a consistent threat from three will quickly make the case (or it should for him to start). Whoever can knock down those shots and play D should be playing next to LeBron. Hart can also attack off that three line for scores, as well. Still need to get better D from him. Wish we could have kept Stauskas from a career night. That killed us. The Stats: He scored 20 points on 3-5 shooting (3-5 from three, 1-3 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 27 minutes. He was a -13. The Action: Overpass on the break, turnover. He curled into the paint and drew FTs on the layup attempt, he missed both. He missed a 16-footer off a screen. He missed a corner three on iso. He stepped around a big on one end to knock a pass away and took the feed on the other to score the And-1 layup, he made the FT. He filled the lane and scored a layup on the break. He attacked in early offense and scored a reverse (should have been an And-1). He grabbed a tap out board, attacked the big and powered in a layup (yelling for the And-1). Second Half: He jumped a passing lane to knock a ball loose and it led to a Kuzma dunk. He sank the Lakers first three from the right wing. He attacked and was blocked. He up-faked, took a dribble, faked and hit the wing three at the third quarter buzzer. He blocked a three. He attacked off the three line and scored a layup between defenders. He gave up a foul on a corner three. His perimeter bounce pass was stolen. He rejected a shot on one end, then hit a three on the other. He missed a three after losing a defender, didn’t quite get on balance.

Beasley -- -- A brief stint out there where he had no impact and looked reluctant to shoot from the perimeter. The Stats: He didn’t shoot or score and had 1 board in 2 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: Nothing to report. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Stephenson -- -- It will likely be an ongoing question all season. Where does he fit in? No 3, no D tonight. Could have used one or the other tonight (especially if he’s taking three threes). Stauskas killed us in that second quarter. I think we had multiple defenders on him, but what you would really like Stephenson to be is that guy who can come off the bench and even if he can’t do anything else, he can put out a fire by shutting someone down defensively. We are kind of missing that (maybe Ingram and Ball can be that). But I’d rather trade what Stephenson brings with his playmaking and transition game for someone who can lock down. We’d have use for that. Lance was a -15. I can’t really put that on him or Ball. Those were just some all bench lineups that were asking for trouble. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-6 shooting (0-3 from three) to go with 2 boards, 2 assists, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 16 minutes. He was a -15. The Action: He missed a three straight away. He missed an open corner three. He blew past his man and scooped in a layup around the help D. He missed a 60-footer at the buzzer. He swished an elbow pull-up. He pushed out the break and hit Hart filling the lane for the And-1. He booted a dribble out of bounds. No box out and he gave up a putback dunk. Second Half: He was blocked on a drive.

Walton -- -- Kuzma in for McGee after the 5-minute mark, Lakers up 1… Hart in for KCP, Lakers up 8… LeBron/Rondo out with 3:22 left, Ball/McGee in up 5… Luke called a timeout up 1 shortly later… He brought in Beasley for McGee and Stephenson for Ingram, so all five starters out… The Lakers trailed 34-31 after the first quarter… He started the Kuzma, LeBron, Hart, Stephenson, Ball lineup… Stauskas with 16 of last 18 points for Blazers… KCP back in for Hart… Kuzma and Ball out for McGee and Rondo with 7:15 left, Lakers down 9… Lakers down 10 when Ingram came back in and they had all the starters back out there with 6:21 left… LeBron picked up his third foul with 6 minutes left… They trimmed the lead down to 4 with 4 minutes left and Luke sat LeBron for Hart. Ingram to the PF… Kuzma in for Ingram, Lakers down 2… Some troubles controlling the defensive glass late in the second quarter… Stephenson in with 31 seconds left for Hart… The Lakers trailed 65-63 at the half. They were 0-12 from three and gave up 9 offensive boards. The Lakers had 50 points in the paint and a 17-6 advantage on the break… The Blazers hit a couple threes and Luke called a timeout… He brought in Kuzma for McGee and Ball for Rondo midway through the quarter… KCP out for Hart down 7… They cut it to 1 and forced a timeout… Down 3 with 3 left, he brought in Stephenson for LeBron and Rondo for Ingram. So Kuzma, Hart, Ball, Stephenson, Rondo lineup. Uber small… After 16 attempts, the Lakers make their first three… The Lakers trailed 93-91 heading into the fourth… Kuzma, LeBron, Hart, Stephenson, Ball to start the fourth… After back-to-back threes to trail by 7, Luke called a timeout… He sat everyone but LeBron for the starters. Hopefully, they can warm up quick… They fell back by 10 and Luke called another timeout… He sat KCP after an awful shot out of a timeout…
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Marauder
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 11:11 pm    Post subject:

Thanks!
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El Seano
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 11:21 pm    Post subject:

Great write up as always DB.

As opposed to concerned I'm actually pretty enthused. This was never likely to be a win; first real game for a team with high squad turnover, on the road in probably one of the toughest arenas to go to, against a squad with very low turnover who are galvanized by the loss of their long time owner.

And we were right there with them despite missing pretty much every 3 we shot. No way we shoot 23% from three again this season.

Knee jerk reactions are just part of the game when you've got LeBron on your squad and there will be plenty of them on here but truthfully there is a lot to like about tonight.

The early schedule is going to be a baptism-by-fire type scenario. I expect a similar result against a rested HOU side on Saturday with the exception of home court advantage perhaps playing a role. The first month of our schedule is tough as hell but I think it's just what this team needs to help gel together.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 3:30 am    Post subject:

Thanks, DB!

A new season again and so much hope in the air!
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 3:33 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB great write up.

Sure seems like we should have kept Randle who is the perfect small ball center and left KCP off the team. We would be much better. BI & Kuzma at the 3 and Ingram at the 2 with Hart. Heck Randle was 2/3 from 3 point last game.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 4:21 am    Post subject:

Thanks, DB.

Beasley and Stephenson have no place on this roster. They don't fit. We need shooters and a backup C. That was the first mistakes of the Magic/Pelinka FO.

We have a lot of work to do on the offensive end.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 5:02 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB! A typical frustrating game in Portland. Looking forward to better chemistry and better shooting.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 5:26 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB. The time and effort you put in your quality reviews (and time you take away from your family) is GREATLY APPRECIATED.

We all know this is going to take time with all the new players. Not ragging on KCP (especially after 1 game), but he can not hold Josh's nut. Josh is the sleeper on this team and he keeps on growing before our eyes.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 5:30 am    Post subject:

danzag wrote:
Thanks, DB.

Beasley and Stephenson have no place on this roster. They don't fit. We need shooters and a backup C. That was the first mistakes of the Magic/Pelinka FO.

We have a lot of work to do on the offensive end.


I believe Beasley can be useful, but Lance plays a completely different kind of game and gives no effort on defense. He's a poor man's Jordan Clarkson.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 5:37 am    Post subject:

LBJ messed around and got nearly a triple double. Nice to have the best player on the Lakers again.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:02 am    Post subject:

Fun game to watch. I thought LBJ, BI, Rondo and McGee all looked really good. I didn’t mind Zos game, I thought his 3 looked improved as did his ft form.

I know it’s an unpopular opinion because he’s just a popular dude, but the loss last night, imo, was on Kuz. He played the 3rd most minutes behind Lebron and Rondo, was 5-15/1-7 and didn’t register a single assist. I really hope he continues to work and doesn’t turn into clarkson 2.0.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:17 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB. Scheduled loss. Portland is tough at home to begin with, their owner just died so emotions were high, and they HATE the Lakers - so they were fired up.

I came away encouraged from last night's game. Last night was an example of a team that was just put together and not knowing fully how to play together. Gonna take some time for them to gel. Even so we still saw how explosive we can be.

Communication on defense is a problem and boxing out to prevent their offensive rebounds I thought killed us. These are fixable thru film study and practice.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:25 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB.

Just work on the shooting and Luke is overthinking his rotations again.

Otherwise, lots of good from last night that should translate into future success.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:42 am    Post subject:

Even though you hate to lose the opening game, honestly I figured this would be a loss.

Even the Lakers championship teams struggled at Portland, that team has our number and the fans there look at every game vs. the Lakers like a Holy War.

We just need to keep the effort up (I thought they played hard last night) and things will work out OK, 81 more.....
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:47 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB. If each of the Lakers on the floor last night would have simply shot the 3 ball at their season average last year, the Lakers would have led most of the night.

I'm glad Hart was able to show some consistency from 3 when it mattered.

KCP, to me, represents the picture of inconsistency. Not just in terms of 3 point shooting, but showing intelligence on the bb floor as well.

Kuzma at center. I like Kuz. I hate this experiment. He's not Draymond Green ffs.

I don't mind small ball as a change of pace to keep the opponent on their heels, but I think small ball for over half of the playing time is flat-out stupid. So we expect our guards to hang back around the rim to gang rebound instead of flying down court on the break to push the pace? It's like saying the engine needs to rev higher while refusing to shift gears.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:59 am    Post subject:

The continued Kuzma at 5 experiment really has me missing Randle. Randle would have killed it as a small-ball 5 in this fast-paced team.

Would he have accepted a 2-3 year deal between 4-8 million, like what he got from NO? Were we so intent on saving our cap space? Was it really Aaron Mintz's fault for souring the Laker FO due to the lack of Paul George meeting? I imagine they thought they could get more (like Nance's 4/45 or Myles Turner's 4/60 or Aaron Gordon's 4/80ish) and only took NO's offer by the time it was clear the big offers weren't there. Ugh.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 7:29 am    Post subject:

Cheers Chief.
A rough start to be sure, we'll be okay though.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 7:39 am    Post subject:

Vadorojo wrote:
The continued Kuzma at 5 experiment really has me missing Randle. Randle would have killed it as a small-ball 5 in this fast-paced team.

Would he have accepted a 2-3 year deal between 4-8 million, like what he got from NO? Were we so intent on saving our cap space? Was it really Aaron Mintz's fault for souring the Laker FO due to the lack of Paul George meeting? I imagine they thought they could get more (like Nance's 4/45 or Myles Turner's 4/60 or Aaron Gordon's 4/80ish) and only took NO's offer by the time it was clear the big offers weren't there. Ugh.


Randle didn't want to be apart of this team!
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Laker7
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 7:45 am    Post subject:

Here we go again. Some no name scrub has a career game against the Lakers. The Lakers manage to hold the other teams starters to a reasonable level but let some nobody cost them the game. Last year against the Lakers it was Pat Connaughton for the Blazers.

And it is not just the Blazers. A lot of the losses last year were due to some bench warmer having a career game against us. Disappointing.
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ThreePointBomber
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:12 am    Post subject:

The second unit has tunnel vision, the lack of ball movement is hurting Lonzo's game. I'd rather have Rondo quarterback the second unit (and when LeBron is off the floor) so he can dictate the pace. I do realize the Zo was on a minutes restriction, and I do believe he starts eventually.

Stop it with Kuzma at the 5. It doesn't work. We have to roll with Zubac. It is his third year in the league, make that big boy earn his paycheck. We were getting KILLED on the glass, which is one of the things I noticed early game. We may have only been out rebounded by 6, but Portland grabbed six more offensive boards than us. Having Kuzma needs to come in and focus on improving his defense and scoring the ball. For the most part wings(2,3,4) are interchangeable, so when someone claims someone is playing out of "position" I laugh. This doesn't apply to point guards and centers though(1s and 5s) If they are not the focal point of an offense, the 1s need to focus on setting everyone else up, ball handling, and making smart plays, while the 5s need to play defense, grab rebounds, set good hard screens, be rim protectors, and rim runners without expecting the ball too much. That is a tall task to ask Kuzma a player who had role last year to score the ball.

Shooting 23% from three is awful. Our starting lineup only has one shooter, and he was a GHOST last night.


Lance needs to play effective defense, or else he is useless out there for us. He was getting torched, and he handles the ball way to much to score instead of making plays. We need play-making Stephenson, not a failed Kobe reject.


Ingram needs to have more volume and consistency for his three point shot. Not only to open up his own game, but the team desperately needs three point shooting in the starting line up. He'll be good for us this year, will def. average 20 a night.

We might actually need to rely on Svi, and Mo(when healthy) we desperately need their shooting.

I would like to see more Beasley, but I don't know where you feed him minutes. Ingram,Lebron, and Kuzma are all going to play. Our rotations are just messed up. It is only game 1, and I'm not overreacting, but Magic downplayed the shooting problem in the off season. Nobody is saying we have to be golden state tier, but sub 35% isn't going to cut it.

Ball-Rondo
Hart-KCP
Ingram-Kuzma
James-Beasley
McGee-Zubac

I honestly want to see Lance out of the rotation, as long as Rondo, and James are playing he is redundant, you can say the same for Lonzo, but he at least stretches the floor, is a willing passer, and plays defense.

Also, Rondo and Lonzo should never be playing at the same time for more than 5 minutes.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:14 am    Post subject:

yinoma2001 wrote:
LBJ messed around and got nearly a triple double. Nice to have the best player on the Lakers again.


It was a good day.

No D, no 3, road game in Portland, half the team is new? I'll take it. Fun game, frenzied pace. Impressed with McGee and Hart.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:15 am    Post subject:

I forgot to add that Josh Hart was the true steal of last year's draft. His play and confidence has really impressed me, he will be starting in this league for years to come.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:17 am    Post subject:

Nobody wrote:
yinoma2001 wrote:
LBJ messed around and got nearly a triple double. Nice to have the best player on the Lakers again.


It was a good day.

No D, no 3, road game in Portland, half the team is new? I'll take it. Fun game, frenzied pace. Impressed with McGee and Hart.


McGee needs to play more minutes. He should play at least 30 minutes a game.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:29 am    Post subject:

oldlakerfan wrote:
Thanks DB great write up.

Sure seems like we should have kept Randle who is the perfect small ball center and left KCP off the team. We would be much better. BI & Kuzma at the 3 and Ingram at the 2 with Hart. Heck Randle was 2/3 from 3 point last game.


...or figure out a way to get Brook back. Randle, I wonder if he had a QO that he was threatening to sign that we wouldn't have matched. Either way, though, I would have been happy with one of them. I also don't know the politics on KCP/LeBron. I certainly assume we're very confident about another big name coming next year.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:40 am    Post subject:

thunder, rockets, wolves are also 0 and 1 to start the season. I personally felt like every single one of lillards fouls was phantom that the refs gave out cause he complains. all. the. time. Take away those and maybe we win.
Thanks DB.
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