Game Debrief: What Went Right And What Went Wrong?

Strange team this year, we’re clearly very good, but maybe not elite? However our offense could be elite, but our defense definitely isn’t. At the same time we’ve been very good in crunch time and it’s going to be hard to stop our starting unit putting big numbers on you.

But OKC may be the best defense of all time. So I don’t know what to make of this season.

 

AR and Luka combine for 73 and Lakers move to 15-4 in beating DAL 129-119. Lakers as a team shot 59% for the game.

Hillbilly Mamba was 12 for 15 overall and 6 for 8 from long. 38/8/3; #77 was 35/5/11. Those two guys made 19 of 20 FTs.

I thought AR was fantastic tonight. I think it was Flagg's elbow that knocked AR down in the paint. AR got up, dazed, his jaw took the shot. If you look at the replay really closely you see a little ring of stars floating above AR's head for around the next 45 seconds. He was temporarily out of it. Next thing: he hits a 3.

Rui started off 1-5 from the field then hit 3s from the corner. His midrange wasn't what it usually is, but DAL is really long defending down low. AD had a couple of spectacular blocks, but looked very rusty on offense.

There were stretches in which we played good defense. Like maybe 4 minutes total.

With 3:33 left in the game we're up 9, Bron gets fouled by Cooper Flagg and misses both FTs. I thought this might lead to a DAL run: PJ tips in a shot: Lakers lead down to 7...but Luka hits Rui for a 13 foot pullup: back to 9: okay! Max Christie (miss this guy) misses a 3, gets his own rebound, Nembhard misses a floater I thought was going in and he gets his own board, then he hits a 20 footer: back to 7, but now there's only 2:20 left. Eating the clock, Luka hits Bron for a 3 and I think we all knew it was over for sure then. The reason I keep suspecting the other team is going to cut it to w/in 2 late is because...that's what this Lakers team has done over and over. Push it to 20, 25. But no.

After the Lakers won a challenge that Luka called for with 70 secs left in the game, Kidd put his scrubs in, but JJ had his starters on the floor, up 12. Why?

svtzr is right: it's a weird team: great record, really good offense, but what we saw in that game against OKC should still haunt every Lakers fan.

I record the games then begin watching them when the actual game-game is almost over, sometimes long over. Tonight I didn't start watching until 11PM, and Amazon Prime really blows when you want to fast-forward through commercials and halftime. Man, I'm totally spoiled by the DVR, friends. I admit it.