The Los Angeles Lakers fell to a big loss in their preseason debut against the Sacramento Kings. After a strong first half that showed a lot of promise for the Lakers, the team fell apart in the second half with most of the starters being rested. They were outscored 64-29 in quarters 3 and 4.
A bright spot for the Lakers was the performance of Russell Westbrook. Westbrook has been demonized by fans all summer long. A report explaining why the Lakers didn’t trade him to Indiana this offseason came out the morning of their preseason debut. In his 14 minutes, Westbrook showed good off-ball play and movement, getting 5 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists.
The strong flashes have prompted coach Darvin Ham to throw his support behind Russ as the Lakers get ready for the regular season.
Darvin Ham said Russell Westbrook is “a Los Angeles Laker and I’m not mad at that.” Said tonight shows that Westbrook will thrive in the Lakers 4-out, 1-in system.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) October 4, 2022
Westbrook can do a lot more but his effort was clear. It’s very encouraging to see Russ come into games with a better attitude and being willing to help others. Coach Ham understands the value Russ brings if the system around him favors him, so maybe these 4-out lineups with Russ prove to be beneficial.
Can The Lakers Earn A Guaranteed Playoff Spot?
Losing by 30 in pre-season is never a good look, but the Lakers had things that could be looked at as encouraging. Anthony Davis looked strong and healthy while rookie Cole Swider showed he can be effective at stretching the floor for the team. Despite those positives, a lot of negatives also emerged.
The Lakers’ defense and shooting are still lacking. The center rotations of Damion Jones and Thomas Bryant did not have the best showing while LeBron James had a stinker performance with just 4 points, going 0-7 on his field goal attempts. The Lakers will rely heavily on LBJ to be firing every night to win games, so this might be an inauspicious start for Year 20 LeBron.
The season is long and the Lakers have a lot of paths they can explore to make this roster better. If everything works the way they plan for it to, the Lakers could easily be a top-6 seed in the West. Based on how this performance looked, the Lakers might be in the play-in tournament battle for the 3rd season in a row.
