KINGS -vs- LAKERS - 10-24-14 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Buzzer Beaten… Once again, the Lakers couldn’t get a defensive board at the end of the game to secure a win and fell 93-92 to the Kings. Hopefully, they leave that behind them in the preseason.

The Lakers held a commanding lead going into the final three minutes. Then proceeded to choke away the win. Missed freethrows again in the final minute cost them (this time two from Smith and one from Lin). But the inability to get a miss on the final possession allowed the Kings to score the game-winning putback at the buzzer.

They settled for Sacre jumpers and didn’t go for the kill down the stretch.

“I told them they looked scared,” Scott said. He rested Kobe, Hill and Boozer today. “You got to play the game to win, not to play it not to lose.”

The Lakers lost Nash officially. Ronnie Price took a shot to his knee and was out after just three minutes in this one. The preseason was not kind to them in the injury department.


Davis -- -- Typically, I try to put the starters here first with those who people may be most interested in first. Who to choose first among Davis, Sacre, Johnson, Ellington and Price? We’ll give it to Davis since he set the one defensively this preseason. He couldn’t finish a couple of oops in the fourth that the Lakers could have used. Good job again playing off the guards. Wish he could have tracked down that rebound the Evans got to at the end of the game. Otherwise, he had a great game on the glass, leading the team in that category while getting some extra minutes tonight. Love seeing the 15 and 13 when given the minutes. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 6-9 shooting (3-4 from the line) to go with 13 boards, 4 assists and 3 fouls in 30 minutes. The Action: He grabbed an Ellington brick and scored. He stripped his man in the post. He faced up, spun to the middle and hit the lefty one hander. He scored a layup off the two-man game with Ellington. He attacked from the FT line and missed the layup. He drew FTs trailing Lin on the break, he made one. He drew FTs on the offensive glass, he made both. He had 9 points on 3-5 shooting and 7 boards. Second Half: He took a bounce pass from Lin and reversed a layup in a crowd, nice finish. He sank an open 12-footer on the dump off from Lin in early offense. He couldn’t finish a lob from Lin, getting undercut with no foul call. He followed Lin’s drive and tipped it in as Jeremy drew a crowd. He couldn’t’ finish an oop in transition.

Price -- -- With a fork official stuck in Nash for the season before we even begin it, the Lakers will rely on Ronnie Price. Unfortunately, he took a hard blow to his knee on D and had to leave the game. (It wasn’t before he banged knees a second time.) The Lakers will look for another PG and this is precisely why. We tried to run Clarkson some at PG, but I think they want him groomed at SG to start his pro career. Missing all of the preseason with the team, whomever they acquire should probably have some experience. The Stats: He didn’t score on 0-1 shooting from three to go with 1 assist and 1 foul in 3 minutes. He was a +1. The Action: He missed a long-pull-up jumper, but got it back taking a charge (painful knee-to-knee contact). Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Johnson -- -- Wes sank a couple of the threes as the team went 7-15 from behind the arc. He led the team with a +19. It’s good to see him with a little bit of aggressiveness on offense. I’d still like to see that aggressiveness manifest itself on boards or steals. He’s got to score a little but it’s those little things that make a big impact. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-6 shooting (2-2 from three) to go with 3 boards, 1 assist, 1 turnover and no fouls in 26 minutes. He was a +19. The Action: He traveled on our first offensive possession. He sank a wing three. He got swatted in transition. He missed a baseline pull-up jumper. Second Half: He swished a wing three on a kickout. He crossed over and hit a long corner jumper. He missed a 15-footer. Nice help challenge to force a pass off on a King jumper.

Sacre -- -- He was stroking jumpers decently early on, but then started clanking. Down the stretch that cost the Lakers in the closing minutes as he missed three straight and goaltended an And-1 on the other. Those were killer. Still, got to give him some credit for what looks like some clear improvement offensively. “I just worked on it,” Sacre said of his jumper. “I worked on my offensive game all summer and that was a key for me. You can’t make shots if you don’t shoot them.” Got to him them in crunch time, but doubtful we see him much there. Sacre was strapped with serious foul trouble after the first quarter, getting tagged with four of them, and couldn’t challenge shots. Unfortunately, that led to having to let a few shots go without a challenge. On one of them, he got dunked on pretty badly by Cousins well holding his arms up straight. Cousins was particularly proud of that one. Rob went to the other end and calmly hit a baseline jumper. A play later and Rob banked in another jumper and forced the Kings timeout. Overall, I think it was a good preseason for him, but he’s not ready for the prime time battle yet. He’ll be much more serviceable this year. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 6-14 shooting to go with 5 boards, 1 turnover and 5 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He sank a quick-fire baseline face-up jumper. He missed a 17-footer. He missed an awful shotput in the middle of the lane. He fumbled a pass from Lin (it will go as a turnover to Lin, but he should have had that). Brain cramp shove off at the three line on his man, offensive foul for no reason. He sank an elbow jumper off a nice pass from Lin. Second Half: He sank a wing jumper given room. He fumbled a shot attempt out of bounds. He swished a baseline jumper. He banked in a short one as the Lakers had an odd-man rush. He missed a long sideline jumper trying to beat the shotclock. He sank a turnaround from the left block. Way short on a challenged elbow jumper. He missed an open wing jumper out of a timeout. He goaltended to give up an And-1 with 2:45 left. Way short on a jumper with a minute left.

Ellington -- -- He and McLemore collided heads late in the game and Wayne was woozy as he was slowly helped into the locker room. McLemore was bleeding all over. That was a collision. He was diagnosed with a concussion and that requires some NBA protocol before coming back. Ellington still suffered from another poor shooting game. Despite that, Scott seemed to hint that he’d be on the roster. He did do a good job moving the ball tonight and finished with 5 assists. Nice seeing him pass off the two-man sequence instead of always chucking. He was missing some tough looks to start this preseason as our offense looked horrible. Now, he’s missing some good looks. Not even close on some of them. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-8 shooting (1-2 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 5 assists, 1 steal and 4 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a +1. The Action: Not close on a pull-up jumper. He got his legs under him, squared up and swished the wing three. Nice job running the two-man game with Davis to set him up for a score. He missed a corner jumper on a kickout. He made a tech FT. He airballed a pull-up three, come on, man. He missed a wide open wing jumper, off as soon as it left his hands. He bricked a good look at a wing three. Second Half: He missed a step-back 22-footer up against the shotclock. He sank a pull-up jumper off the pinch post. Nice drive and kick to Lin for three.

Lin -- -- With Nash out, this is Kobe and Jeremy’s team now. Boozer and Price will provide some vet leadership, but the offense will be led by these two. I think this is the situation Lin has been in need of since NY. A vet leader at his side to mentor him and enough experience under his belt to play with both consistency and control, Jeremy could have an excellent season. I really wish he could have been in the battle with Nash. That would have helped him a lot. Hopefully, Nash will be in his ear quite a bit. Tonight, Jeremy led the team in scoring and assists with Kobe out. With Price down, Jeremy was in the mix early. He attacked the paint and hit from the perimeter. On one highlight, he slammed on the brakes in the lane, crossed over between his legs and went the other direction for a layup. After the game, however, he was still thinking about the end of the game. “Hit that freethrow, get that rebound,” Lin said. Lin’s only miss of the game from the line came with 10 seconds left. Lakers haven’t looked good in those situations thus far. Got to close the door shut. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 6-12 shooting (2-6 from three, 5-6 from the line) to go with 7 assists, 1 board, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 5 fouls in 32 minutes. He had a +/- of 0. The Action: Quick attack slicing through the D after running a two-man game out of the corner. He got the shooter’s touch on a wing three after nearly throwing a pass away. He set up Sacre for the elbow jumper off the bounce pass. He pushed up the break and dropped a bounce pass off to Davis behind him for FTs. He missed a wing three behind a screen. He missed a wing three. He attacked the lane with speed, took contact and drew FTs, he made both. He iso’d with the clock down, attacked past his man to his right and scored the layup. He threw a pass out of bounds getting the wires crossed. He hit Smith running the floor for a layup. He had 9 points on 3-5 shooting and 3 assists at the half. Second Half: He missed a 35+ foot three trying to beat the shotclock. He probed baseline, circled into the lane and somehow made a jumper when he was expecting a foul call that didn’t come. He threaded a bounce pass to Davis in the post for a reverse layup. He saw a bunch of open real estate in front of him as he brought the ball up, attacked it and drew FTs as the D scrambled to recover, he made both. He attacked the offensive zone with speed and hit Davis for the easy jumper. He attacked, hung and just missed the layup. He missed a three from the top of the arc. Wicked cross-over between his legs as he stopped on a dime in the lane, changed directions and scored the layup. He swished a wing three on the kickout from Ellington. He sliced through the D and somehow got a layup up and Davis came in to tap it in as it came off the rim (that’s what dribble penetration will do). He wound the clock down with the floor spaced, blew past his man and was fouled on the layup attempt with 10 seconds left, he made just one FT.

Randle -- -- He missed a couple jumpers to start the game, but that didn’t prevent him from staying aggressive. Sometimes those misses will affect young players (and vets) and they disappear. He didn’t. Randle kept at it and showed both that perimeter shot and some sensational moves off the dribble. He had a cross-over to lose his man for one drive that was only topped by a series of moves to attack baseline and score around a couple defenders on another drive. Those are serious skills on a guy his size. He is going to be a beast. He had some pushouts off the dribble tonight and was called for a foul on one of them as he cracked Gay in the face with his left. Guards will use that off arm to protect the dribble. Randle’s off arm is maybe a little higher at head level. “I didn’t even feel it, so I didn’t know I hit him,” Randle said. He picked up three fouls in a matter of a few seconds in the first half during that stretch putting him into some foul trouble. Fun to see him get the minutes tonight. The second unit is starting to rely on him a little more, like they must with Swaggy out right now. Randle needs to keep a steady effort out there. On occasion you will see him stand for a sequence. He had a strong motor in college. Hopefully, once he gets more comfortable and conditioned we see him bring that. “When he gets tired, he loses focus,” Scott said, but still praised Randle’s development. Looking forward to seeing him out there every game. He’s got a massive upside so it’s up to him how good he becomes. Sky is the limit. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 6-12 shooting (0-1 from the line) to go with 9 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: He missed a wing jumper on iso. He missed a good look at a short elbow jumper off the dribble. He missed a tough fading runner across the lane off a couple really long steps. He threw a pass away on a full-court rumble (he should have shot that, the D was on its heels). He got the stop on one end, pushed it out and couldn’t make the layup off contact. Quick attack from the wing past Evans going to his left and he hit the left jumphook (more of that, please). He blew past his man on the dribble and scored a layup. Wow, he up-faked from the right wing, went to his right on the baseline, drew the help D, pivoted around the second defender and scored the And-1 at the rim (big time set of moves there), he missed the FT. Way off on a pull-up 19-footer. He measured and sank a 17-footer left open. He sank a 19-footer off the two-man game. He picked up his third foul cracking Gay in the face and sending him to the locker room as he reached for the ball (don’t get in the way of the Freight Train). He picked up a fourth foul setting a pick (three fouls in the last 30 seconds). He had 10 points on 5-10 shooting and 6 boards. Second Half: He backed his man up on the dribble and hit the top-of-the-key jumper. He couldn’t finish a full-court drive. He posted up, drew the D and kicked to Clarkson for the three.

Clarkson -- -- Bummed, he missed some games this preseason, but with how the roster is clearing out ahead of him with our guards and wing players, he will be thrown in the fire in the regular season. Clarkson hasn’t shown any signs of not being up for that challenge. He hustles on a D, a very willing defender. He may not always do the right thing, but he has a little of that Jodie Meeks effort in him, for sure. With experience, that’s could make for a very strong defender. Of course, we couldn’t secure a board and get a stop at the end of the game and lost. “You got to continue playing,” Clarkson said. Offensively, he ran a little at the PG with the injury issues. He and Randle have shown a lot of chemistry together. Several of Clarkson’s scores were working with Randle. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-10 shooting (1-2 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a -13. The Action: He sank a pull-up 20-footer from the wing working off the Davis screen. He missed a pull-up jumper from the top of the key. He missed a wing jumper off the handoff. He missed a three straight away. He sank his floater off the handoff from Randle. He got backdoored on the other end to give up a layup. Second Half: He drew a whistle on the contact and drew FTs by throwing up to the rim, he made both. He forced up a tough one-hander on iso. He drained a three on the Randle post kickout. He took the Randle outlet, attacked with speed, elevated and scored the layup. He was called for an illegal screen. He got tapped on a drive to his right. He pushed up an inbounds with speed and put a lob pass from about 35 feet right at the rim for Smith to dunk. He forced up and missed a tough jumper up against the shotclock. He was stripped in the corner, turnover.

Smith -- -- Missing two FTs with 40 seconds left will probably stick with him. You want to make a strong impression in that last preseason game if you are on the bubble. His last impression may be those two misses. Good efforts on the glass from him at the SF spot. Wes could take note of the effort Smith puts in here. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-4 shooting (0-2 from the line) to go with 6 boards (2 offensive) and 1 foul in 22 minutes. He was a -20. The Action: HE attacked and couldn’t finish in a crowd. Good job running the floor and Lin found him for the layup. He battled for an offensive board off a missed FT and reset the offense. Second Half: He finished a big lob dunk on the break to a large cheer from the Vegas fans. He missed a long wing jumper in crunch time. He crashed the glass on the missed lob to Davis and drew FTs with 40 seconds left, he missed both up by 2.

Brown -- -- Nice to see us get him a couple good looks at three. He’s a shooter and consistently drained them at Mizzou last year. Hopefully, he’s knocking them down in practice. I didn’t think there was much chance of him making the squad, but the Lakers may get an extra roster slot with Nash’s injury, so who knows? The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-4 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 2 boards and no fouls in 13 minutes. He was a -2. The Action: He swished a wing three on a kickout, finally getting him a good look. Second Half: He missed a wing three. He couldn’t finish a push out over a defender. He attacked baseline and overpowered his man for a layup.

Scott -- -- He sat Price for Lin after 3 minutes, Price banging his knee twice. Sheesh. Lakers and their PGs… He brought in Randle for Sacre midway through the quarter when Rob picked up foul trouble… Davis picked up his third, so Sacre returned with 5 minutes left, Lakers up 4. Sacre picked up his third foul shortly later… He brought in Clarkson for Ellington with 3:48 left, Lakers up 3… Sacre picked up his fourth foul shortly later. Scott went back to Davis (probably should put Wes at PF)… Smith for Wes with under a minute left… The Lakers led 26-24 after the first… He started a Randle, Smith, Ellington, Clarkson, Lin unit… We brought in Brown for Lin… Ellington and Clarkson misfiring from the perimeter… He brought back in Davis and Wes for Smith and Ellington… The Lakers trailed 49-48 at the half. Sacre and Randle with 4 fouls, Davis with 3… Quick start for the Lakers and they forced a timeout leading 57-51. Nice job knocking down shots… After a couple of jumpers from Sacre, the Lakers led 55-63, forcing another timeout… He brought in Randle and Clarkson for Sacre and Ellington… We went to Clarkson at the PG to close the third… The Lakers led 76-64 after the third. Holding the Kings to 15 points in the quarter… He started a Sacre, Randle, Johnson, Brown, Clarkson lineup… Lin back in for Clarkson midway through the quarter, Lakers up 11… So second half starters all back in. They couldn’t put the Kings away. Lakers scored just 16 points in the fourth. Felt like they just needed a bucket in those last couple minutes to put the Kings away. They couldn’t get it…

[EddieJonesss]

Thanks DB.

[cheesysapien]

Thanks DB. I agreed that this is the best situation Lin can be in. I think he would still be able to get advice from Steve beside Kobe. I too wish he get to play with Steve, but alas, that is not to be ... I also predict that Lin will have a very good season. I think the Lakers and him will surprise a lot of people.
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"We have a lot of guys that have been kinda discarded ... Myself with the injury and the age. Jeremy ... a bunch of players who other teams really felt they had no use for. So we have that kind of attitude built into ourselves" -- Kobe Bryant

[stoneclearing]

Tough loss, but encouraging game from Randle, Lin, Davis, and even Clarkson.

[seanz8]

Great analysis!

[Shaber]

Thanks, DB!

Good to see Randle and Clarkson, if they get more accustomed and develop some more, we have used the picks really well.

Next things Sacre needs to learn are some post moves (Kareem, are you there?) and rebounding. I don't have much trust in him in the D department.

Ellington . The shooter who can not shoot. We've had too many of those. I see no value in him.

Price - you better heal fast and help us break that curse.
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.

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

[fiendishoc]

Without Reggie Evans getting away with pushing Davis on that oop, the game was ours. That play ended up being a five point swing. Lin was also blatantly shoved by Evans on the last play.

Then again I was just happy that game didn't go to overtime, and no one else got hurt.

[TooCool]

Thanks DB.

Really lame way to lose at the end when everyone decided to watch the shooter and not box out. I don't know why but I feel like we might lose at least 10 games of the season just from sloppy finishes in a close game.

High hopes for Randle. Hope he stays healthy. Dare I say, he might be a sleeper pick for Rookie of the Year.
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[ADA32]

Did not watch the game due to family social engagement.

Told wife, I'll read DB's analysis in the morning instead!

Thanks DB.

Looks like we just need a little finishing touch. This is where the vet leadership and experience will give us the win.

[DancingBarry]

[JM]

[TooCool]

[hopandskip]

Not a big deal. Losing the lead was worse than that last shot. But team will learn from it. People played that last shot like there was no time left. Anyway, rather that one point loss than go to OT and someone else get hurt. Meaningless preseason game that Byron can use to teach from.

[huangjs]

Nice breakdown analysis!

[lakerpr]

Nice read as always. Laker is missing too many players. With all the rookies and new teammates they exceeded my expectation actually.

[ice_cold]

Nice read DB! Missed most of game, it was so nice knowing I could count on recap.

I love seeing how Julius Freight-train Randle, Davis and also Clarkson are developing. So fun.

Re Lin's post game comments, yeah, you will see, noone is harder on Lin than Lin himself.

[Goober]

Ronnie Price + Knee Pads =

[fubby1]

This was a loss that didn't really feel like a loss, enjoyed the game. Ridiculous how Kings players celebrated like they just won NBA finals.
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Go DODGERS !!!!

[Laker's Fan]

Sacramento was playing physical. Landry, Evans, Cousins, even their guards were in fight mode. It was a good test, if not a little dirty (Landry especially). You could see it caused Randle to lose focus a couple times. Not used to the level of physicallity.

It was a good opportunity for Scott to see who needs coaching in that element (focus mainly)
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Austin Reaves keeps his game tight, like Kobe Bryant on game night.

[Lakersneuron]

Thanks DB. Still like this teams mentality moving forward. Even if we suck, watching Randle will be a lot of fun.
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"I don’t give a [expletive] what you say. If I go out there and miss game winners, and people say, 'Kobe choked, or Kobe is seven for whatever in pressure situations.' Well, [expletive] you. Because I don’t play for your [expletive] approval."

[DancingBarry]

[automatic]

Thanks DB! Didn't have time to watch the game but I knew that reading your analysis would more than make up for it. Now I want to go back and watch my recording of it (up until the last play).

[All_Star_Laker]

Anyone else think we should start Ed Davis over Carlos Boozer? Defense is a priority.

[TheBlackMamba]

Hopefully Davis and Randle are starting by the All-Star break. I know Byron's got that whole thing of sticking with his vets, but Hill and Boozer is an atrocious starting front court on defense, and barely average on offense. There's a reason we were getting blown out in the first quarter earlier on in the preseason when those guys were playing the bulk of the minutes - I just hope that trend doesn't continue on into the regular season...