In the aftermath of a 106-102 win over the Clippers on Friday, Lakers star LeBron James spoke on his team’s defense and their commitment to excellence on that end of the floor. James confirmed the Lakers’ defensive identity and explained how he didn’t want his team to be too dependent on their shot-making.
“It was just us, it is who we are at this point,” said James in the post-game press conference. “We hang our hat on our defense because you can’t always understand or know what’s going to happen offensively as far as the shooting or whatever the case may be, but defensively is where we hang our hat, it’s gonna give us a chance to win every night.”
The win over the Clippers last night put the Lakers at 16 games above .500 and fourth in the West at 37-21. With LeBron, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and a solid supporting cast, the Lakers have high expectations this year and they believe there is still room for growth.
“Just continue to grow, said James. “We want to continue to grow offensively, continue to grow defensively. We’re in a good place but we’re not comfortable at all. We haven’t played our best game.”
At 40 years old, LeBron James continues to lead the Lakers to prosperity in the West. With averages of 24.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 8.6 assists per game, he’s been huge in helping the Purple and Gold maintain one of the best records in the league.
With the Luka Doncic trade, the Lakers leaned entirely on their offense and they are betting that the 26-year-old superstar will keep them relevant long after LeBron’s last NBA game. Even this season, Doncic says his arrival was enough to put the Lakers in title contention, but it’s still too early to say.
The key to lasting success for the Lakers is on the defensive end, where they have typically been among the NBA’s best teams. They were a dominant defensive unit with Anthony Davis and it’s how they won the title in 2020. So when the Lakers traded Davis, and rescinded the deal for Mark Williams, fans expected to see a major drop off in their presence on the inside. Some even said this season was already lost.
Instead, the Lakers have been proving everyone wrong by playing some of their best defense in years. By packing the paint and allowing certain players open looks from three, the Lakers are keeping teams in check and it’s led to them holding the second-best defensive rating in the league over the last 10 games.
It’s still a relatively small sample size but it’s a sign that the Lakers may have found something that works. Love him or hate him, coach Redick has made a major difference for the Lake Show, and if they can just stay healthy for the playoffs, it might be enough to make some serious noise in the Western bracket.
Ultimately, only time will tell how far the Lakers can go this season but we already know that their offense won’t be the problem. With LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Austin Reaves, this team is set from a scoring standpoint and it seems like they might have figured it out on the other end as well.
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