On their sixth game in eight days, the Los Angeles Lakers had a long injury report for tonight’s showdown versus the Milwaukee Bucks at the Crypto.com Arena. Down six players (including four starters), the Lakers were major underdogs to win this game at home but they still managed to put up a decent fight against Giannis and the Bucks despite the loss (114-89).
The Bucks took an early lead in the game, and they were up 15 points after the first-quarter buzzer. Slowly but surely, the Lakers finally got their offense moving and they managed to keep it relatively close in the first half. Unfortunately for LA, the game blew wide open in the third quarter, where the Bucks outscored the Lakers by 11 points (23-34).
Giannis Antetokounmpo led his team with 28 points, seven rebounds, and four assists on 9-15 shooting. Kyle Kuzma dropped 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists while Brook Lopez tallied 11 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks on 4-8 shooting.
For the Lakers, Dalton Knecht had a solid performance with 17 points, four rebounds, and three assists on 5-14 shooting. Bronny James finished with 17 points, three rebounds, and five assists on 7-10 shooting while Alex Len dropped 10 points, nine rebounds, and one assist on 4-7 shooting.
The Purple and Gold were on a three-game win streak before tonight’s loss but it shouldn’t take long for them to get back on track. On Saturday against the Bulls, LeBron James is set to return and the Lakers will be close to full strength once again. Still, we learned a lot from this game and it tells us more about where both teams stand at this point in the season.
Elite Coaching From JJ Redick
The Lakers were pretty much unrecognizable in this game, save for Jaxson Hayes, who was the only active starter. Under normal circumstances, the game would have been completely out of reach for the Lakers, and by the end of the night, it was a total blowout.
Thanks to JJ Redick, however, the Lakers put up a good fight in the first half until their poor shooting finally caught up to them. JJ drew up several great plays and had his team locked in on a game plan. Most importantly, every Laker was playing hard and bustling with maximum effort.
Under Darvin Ham, the Lakers lacked direction and cohesion on the court and they did not have a reliable approach to every game. With Redick in charge now, the Lakers’ ceiling has been raised and you can see how his gameplan has elevated the team this season.
Shooting Struggles For LA
The Lakers needed everything to go their way tonight to have any chance to win the game. With Giannis Antetokounmpo going off against the Lakers (28 points in 29 minutes), they needed to respond with hot shooting of their own.
Sadly, with no LeBron James, Luka Doncic, or Austin Reaves, the Lakers didn’t have anyone to turn to for a quick bucket and it resulted in a miserable shooting night: 41.5% from the field and 34.4% from three.
With poor shooting and constant turnovers, the offense was completely dysfunctional for the Lakers and it showed in the box score. After scoring just 19 points in the first 12 minutes, the Lakers scored 23 points and then 20 points in the final two quarters of the blowout game.
Bronny James Breakout Game
Many Lakers fans expected Dalton Knecht or Gabe Vincent to lead the squad tonight but it was actually Bronny James who put on a show with his best game yet as a Laker.
In 30 minutes, James dropped 17 points, three rebounds, and five assists on 7-10 shooting. It’s a new career-high for the young point guard, who is averaging 1.6 points, 0.5 rebounds, and 0.4 assists per game on 26.3% shooting.
After getting drafted 55th overall this summer, it’s been a slow process for Bronny James but he’s slowly proving his worth as an NBA role-player. As he gets more and more comfortable on the floor, Bronny is getting smarter with his shot selection and is also gaining confidence. Clearly, it made an impact for the Lakers tonight.
In a game like this, it’s hard to make any serious conclusion about the Lakers. They were missing their entire core rotation and it was on the backup players to try and fill their shoes. It was an impossible task for the Lakers tonight but now that it’s over they can focus on getting healthy and preparing for their next game: against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday at the Crypto.com Arena.
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