Game Debrief: What Went Right And What Went Wrong?

Post of the month!

 

We will continue to put these words on repeat all season until Rob fixes this imbalanced squad. I think he can, it will just take this deadline plus the summer to get there.
I know we were hoping Smart would dramatically turn back the clock and be our defensive lead, but injuries and age have greatly hindered this- just like with most.
Is it worth watching this game for Thiero’s minutes?

 

We got our a** kicked, but I'm not ready to declare, that all is lost yet. We have a lot of the right ingredients IMO. Rob should already be zeroed in, on trade targets to upgrade us into contender status. I still don't believe that we are as far off, from that as some folks. One or two mid-level moves should do the trick. I'm talking This season, not over the summer.

 

i think we were doing it with smoke and mirrors, and then teams just kind of figured us out. i think there are strategic counters that we haven't employed, but some of it is just we don't have the right guys. but we all knew that coming in.

 

We need to get rid of at least 3-4 players and hope, that "new guys" bring some grit and energy.
Also, JJ needs some in game adjustments and "plan B". If we face OKC, Houston, Denver, PHX, SA or even Minny, we're getting smoked.
Btw, PHX looks much better than i anticipated, i guess getting rid of cupcake made them like basketball again... GSW should take notes and send Donkey packing.

 

True that

 

To be fair and this big blowouts are disappointing the injuries have been brutal. Just lots of manpower down every game it feels like

 

yeah, but earlier in the season, we showed life and pulled some of these games out instead of just getting thrashed. we're not as bad as we look now, but we're closer to our point differential than our record, for sure.

it would be nice to have at least most of the rotation for 5 straight games, though.

 

There are definitely structural issues with the team, we talk about them here everyday. But I think a big part of the recent decline in play is the newness of the season waring off. Like us, Denver's defense has also dropped off. In part due to injuries for sure, but in part to effort waning. The Heat have cooled off after their hot start with their new offense and crazy pace. Rockets have been up and down recently. Even OKC got blown out yesterday.

 

the malaise is real.

 

Lakers are down right now. LeBron needs more shots

 

Lakers are always down. It’s a irritating issue.

 

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.
Not athletic enough.
Too slow.
Can’t win the 50/50 balls.
Awful defense.
Not enough imagination on offense to get ball and player movement.
Ad currently constructed, this team gets swept by OKC, Spurs, Rockets, or Denver.
I know Rob shouldn’t make a panic trade, but as currently constructed, we could easily end up the 7th or 8th seed.

 

In the immortal words of The Grinch That Stole Christmas: Stink. Stank. Stunk.

 

There’s a lot wrong with the team right now:

• roster obviously needs to be shuffled. General lack of athleticism.
  
• Starting lineup obviously needs to change. Bad net rating on the year and started the game in a double-digit hole today. Everyone knows what needs to happen, just make the move. Who cares if Rui cares about starting. He’s not a good enough player for that to matter.
  
• It’s not all on the players’ effort, JJ. You’re not doing a good enough job either. Run some f***ing plays, the data is clear that this team performs better running organized offense. And yet you just let them go freelance heavy out there when it clearly plays into their lackadaisical tendencies.
  
• Defensively, we just don’t have the personnel to go as switch-heavy as you’d like JJ. We have two viable 7 foot centers (I know Jaxson didn’t play tonight), build a defensive scheme around what you actually have and not your ideal vision for how basketball should be played.
  
• Luka hasn’t played well for a few weeks now, despite some big box score numbers. There’s just too much unseriousness to his game sometimes. Sitting on the floor after he doesn’t get a call he should have gotten while the Rockets get an easy basket in transition. Silly turnovers. b****ing to the refs constantly. Jokic and Shai are just better players than him right now because they do less of that stuff. He’s the best player, he needs to set the tone.

 

Lebron's box outs reached Denver series bad
Luka taking a bunch of step back 3's when the Lakers were in striking range to tie were brutal
Rui - I've said enough he's a disaster against high motor teams

Marcus Smart is a flawed player but the team not rallying around him after he came back from what looked like a really bad shoulder injury or dislocation pissed me off the most.

 

Lake Show been harshing my buzz in a serious way lately, and losing to HOU on national TV - not really looking like we can compete with them - was, of course, no exception. The defense is just bad. After the game JJ ripped the team: "We don't care enough!" and I was saying that to myself all through today's loss, so I can't help but agree with JJ here. The Q is: WHY?

Came out flat and lost the 1st Q 37-25 and were never really in it. Again.

We shot 51%, but HOU shot 53%. I'd like to say we need to move the ball more on offense, but really: good defense would make us the team we want. And we do not have good defense. Is our Defense good? It is not. It's porous, lazy, and, increasingly, lookin' hopeless. You really need to exert and care. Defense tires you out, but ya guys are making hellacious sums of money to ALSO play defense, not just offense. My gawd...

Rebounds:
Lakers: 25
Rockets: 48

That might be all anyone needs to say about this game on the objective level.

Ayton: 36 mins: 2 boards, total. Rui couldn't hit a shot (literally: not one: 0 for 6) and was obviously rusty, but that was a bad performance regardless. Aaaand AR is injured again.

There was one Laker who finished with a +1 in the +/- game: Laravia. Which makes sense, because he hustles his butt off every minute he's out there. Oh yea, there was just one other Laker who finished in the plus territory - he was a +5 in 26 mins off the bench, but I won't name him or it'll add to my apparent rep of backing a loser player, who hustles and exerts and cares as much as Laravia.

Meanwhile, the MIN@DEN game was a barnburner. Hope y'all saw it. Holy schmokings! MIN was down 15 with 5:30 left, and Ant hit a corner 3 with 1.1 left, Divencenzo in his jock, to force OT, then MIN scored the first 9 of OT, only to see Joker lead DEN back for the win. Joker: 56/16/15, and broke the NBA record for most points in one OT: 18. And they were all after MIN scored the first 9! Sorry, but I can't help but see SGA's MVP last year as tainted: in what world is SGA better than the Joker? I mean, really? Dude's freakin' sick.

 

Is it a coincidence that since LBJ has been back that we haven't looked the same except for a few games?

 

Probably