Optimism Discussion: The Laker's Sky Is Not Falling

We just need a 10 game winning streak- AD, probably wight Shaka:

 

I imagine that was cathartic for the team. They’ve been playing hard and it’s just been rough going. Like Weezy said, nice to see everyone enjoying themselves.

 

Definitely good to get a win.

Shots were falling and the guys seemed like a weight had been lifted off their shoulders.

 

Not just Shoot Better, but Shoot Smarter...
The most encouraging thing to me about the Win vs. DEN is that we shot 43% from Three, but only attempted 30 Threes.... Not 40+
We weren't forcing Threes at the end of the game & giving up possessions. You could tell there was a focused effort to not settle for the quick, easy 3pt shots. Hopefully this trend continues.

 

77-5

 

Lakers turning point? Why Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis are now reasons for optimism for Los Angeles again
Jovan Buha
Oct 31, 2022
58

LOS ANGELES — There hasn’t been much for Lakers fans to cheer about this season.

But with 37.3 seconds remaining in the third quarter, and the Lakers leading the Denver Nuggets 88-85 with a limping Anthony Davis at the free-throw line, Russell Westbrook turned to the Crypto.com Arena crowd and waved his hands, encouraging the fans to stand.

The crowd, as rowdy as they had been all season, sensing the surge of energy that their team needed to secure its first win of the season, rose to their feet, clapping and yelling and hollering.

The moment signified the recent sacrifices Westbrook and Davis have both made in an attempt to save the Lakers’ season. Both players stepping outside of their comfort zones — Westbrook coming off the bench and Davis playing through pain — played a sizable role in the Lakers’ first win of the season, a 121-110 victory over the Denver Nuggets.


GO DEEPER

Lakers defeat Nuggets to win first game of season

Westbrook’s relationship with the fan base has been contentious, to put it kindly. By the midway point of last season, Laker fans had largely turned on him. Spectators gasped at his shot selection and booed him. Some even trolled and called him “Westbrick,” which offended Westbrook and his family. Westbrook certainly did himself no favors by rarely taking accountability for his subpar play or trying to endear himself to the fan base.

That animosity carried into this season, with many fans hoping Westbrook would be traded — even if it costs the franchise two valuable first-round picks — or sent home. As recently as during the Portland game last week, there were gasps and profanities hurled at Westbrook when he missed layups and 3s, and especially after his controversial two-for-one decision that partly cost the Lakers the game.

But Westbrook’s shift to the bench two games ago has yielded a much better version of him — and the Lakers — and the relationship with fans is beginning to thaw. Westbrook played a pivotal role in the Lakers’ win, posting 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in 32 minutes off the bench. The Lakers were a team-best plus-18 with Westbrook on the floor.

Sunday’s warm second-half interactions — the fans also cheered loudly when Westbrook checked back to close the game at the 5:10 mark of the fourth quarter — was notable progress with the icy dynamic.

“I’m so happy, man,” head coach Darvin Ham said of the reaction to Westbrook’s play. “I can’t even imagine what that kid is going through. One of the biggest things about me getting this job was for him to get that respect that he deserved because a lot of what went on last year was not his fault. And everything, all of the blame, was placed on him.”

Westbrook is still the primary scapegoat, but the blame has increasingly been placed on Davis’ broad shoulders as he continues to battle his extensive injury history and the ghost of Bubble AD.

Davis’ lower back soreness has lingered since training camp, already keeping him out of three preseason games and the Lakers’ most recent loss in Minnesota. Davis was a game-time decision, but decided to push through the pain after testing his back out in a pregame workout.

He gutted out a 23-point, 15-rebound, two-assist, one-steal, one-block performance as he limped up and down the floor for significant stretches. He was efficient, making 10 of 18 shots, and battled two-time defending MVP Nikola Jokic to a near-draw in the paint (Jokic had 23 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and two blocks).

Davis scored eight of his 23 points in the fourth, carrying the offense in the early part of the frame as the Nuggets tried to mount a comeback. There was an extra oomph behind the cheers for Davis, who was clearly laboring and pouring out everything he had on the hardwood.

“Huge impact, man, the way he fought through that,” Ham said. “I care about his body. I want him to be the AD that we all know he can be on that championship run. He showed it tonight. His tenaciousness on defense. Timely shot-making. Communicating.”

With 2:12 remaining in the game, Davis tipped in a missed shot after battling in the restricted area and his back flared up. He screamed as he sauntered back down the floor, and Ham nearly subbed Patrick Beverley in for him before Davis waved it off.

During the next timeout, at the 1:36 mark, Ham asked Davis if he wanted to come out.

“‘No. Hell no,’” Davis said to Ham. “‘I got you. I’m with you.’”

“He was determined to finish this game,” Ham said.

Ham reiterated pregame that Davis’ injury is a matter of pain tolerance. Davis said he’s in a “pretty good amount” of pain after aggravating his back during the game and is going to spend the next two days managing it as best he can ahead of the Lakers’ matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday.

“You saw on that putback, it kinda just comes and goes, these little shocks that go,” Davis said. “But at that point, it’s like you’re playing off of adrenaline. So, I know tonight, maybe tomorrow, I’m probably going to feel it more. But it’s all manageable. Just gotta do what I can to make sure I’m on the floor to help the team win.”

Davis has been candid about the toll that his injuries have taken on him mentally, especially over the past two seasons, which have been the most injury-riddled of his career. He dislikes the perception that he’s injury-prone and is called nicknames like “Street Clothes.”

LeBron James and Westbrook each alluded to concern over Davis’ mentality after missing the game in Minnesota. Ham said Davis doesn’t need to be a “hero” for the team.

But Davis said there is no reason to worry.

“I’m in a great space mentally,” Davis said. “I mean, it is what it is. … I’m not letting this kind of stop me. I’m doing everything I can to make sure I can go out there and play and we’ll deal with the rest when that time comes.”

There was far more to the Lakers’ win than just the impressive contributions from Davis and Westbrook.

James led all scorers with 26 points and added six rebounds and eight assists. The team finally shot the ball well, making a season-high 13 3-pointers and a season-best 43.5 percent of their shots from deep. They only turned the ball over nine times. They limited Denver to nine fastbreak points after the Nuggets scored a season-high 35 in the previous matchup in Denver. Austin Reaves, Troy Brown Jr. and Lonnie Walker IV are helping on both ends and stabilizing the wing rotation.

But with a top-heavy roster construction, the performances of the Lakers’ stars will always carry more weight. Despite looking his age in the first half, James bounced back in the second half and carried the offense during pivotal moments. He’s reliable. Davis and Westbrook, two of the most criticized stars in the league, are typically less so.

But with Westbrook accepting a bench role and the parameters of Ham’s vision for him, and Davis trying to play as close to 82 games as possible, even if it means occasionally wincing up and down the floor, the Lakers are getting about all they can realistically ask for from the No. 2 and 3 on the roster. And the results naturally followed with the Lakers winning their first game.

Of course, things are still far from rosy in LakerLand after one win. The team is 1-5 and 14th in the Western Conference. They have a considerable hole to climb out of over the next few months. Their schedule is going to lighten up relatively soon, but they have important clashes coming up against the Pelicans, Jazz, Cavaliers and Clippers. The Lakers need to at least split those matchups.

Moreover, James was rather despondent in his postgame press conference and hasn’t spoken as glowingly of Westbrook’s bench success as Ham and Davis have. Westbrook was twice asked about the crowd and atmosphere/environment and he chose not to compliment or even acknowledge the crowd or fan base in his responses. The team’s vibe was much better on Sunday, but the chemistry clearly isn’t where it needs to be yet.

There are problems, on and off the court, that eventually have to be solved. But wins don’t come easy in the NBA in 2022, as the Lakers have learned early in this season. For one night, there was plenty to celebrate — in the stands and in the locker room — for a group in desperate need of some optimism after a disastrous start to their season.

Back in the locker room, Ham began giving the team a heartfelt postgame speech before the players interrupted him to pour ice water on their first-year coach in celebration of his first career win.

“Tonight, we needed to prove something to ourselves,” Ham said. “Not to the world. Not to the media. We had to prove it to ourselves — and I felt great about how we responded.”

 

Dame is already out for a week, maybe two. If that was AD, this place would be a train wreck lol. Davis needs to mimic Embiid and work with someone on learning how to fall properly. Seriously though, Embiid said that has saved him from a lot of minor injuries he used to suffer. Big people aren't built to continually hit the floor, the ground doesn't give.

 

All it takes is any random s*** happens injury for AD and this place is disgusting. The sore back early made it a train wreck and then that really hard fall none of the detractors cut any slack. So entitled to be ready to think we'll just pick up more "title capable" winning stars when James and Davis are gone, like the years after Kobe's achilles injury, retirement and before LeBron coming didn't happen. The TANK years ..... with NO one of any star caliber giving us a sniff and missing the playoffs with losing records, in spite of having good and easy to root for young players from all the lottery finishes. (raises hand as one sad to see any of them go).

The best of the best superstars win rings. Incredibly hard to get them in today's NBA with being a famous brand unto yourself can happen in any city now unlike the good old days of L.A. being such an advantageous destination. And the home team having such advantages with salary extensions.

 

I'd take this team over the mess in Brooklyn.

 

I’ll be interested to see our record in games Lebron and AD play and we shoot >33% from three. So far we’re 1-0.

 

it looks to me like he has. a lot of fans and media make fun of him for falling, but i think most of that is intentional and meant to prevent injury. obviously not landing on his back, but many times he just kind of goes into a roll or something, which is what they teach you.

yeah, people seem to really think it won't go right back there, and it will. greg freaking monroe turned down our huge offer. dude was out of the league before that contract was up and thought playing for milwaukee or detroit was the better option. that's how undesirable we were as a location and desperate we were for talent.

lebron's going to be done within a couple years. AD probably lasts this contract and is done. trying to bring about the end of that earlier so that we can jumpstart that journey again doesn't interest me.

i don't know if this is optimism, but my feeling is that we're going to be better this year and next than we will be for several years after. all the more reason not to trade away our picks in those years, too.

 

Anthony is a bit reckless in the way he throws his body around sometimes to me. You applaud the effort, but sometimes you have to play it smart. I think of Boogie injuring his quad in Golden State, diving for a meaningless loose ball at the end of the game.

 

Whew!

That was tough but I’ll definitely take it.

 

Man that was nerve-racking, but we have another win!