The Los Angeles Lakers managed to blow a 20-point lead against the Phoenix Suns, but LeBron James saved the day!
The Los Angeles Lakers bounced back from their loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Cup by knocking off the Phoenix Suns on the road.
The Lakers’ defensive weakness was exposed in their game against the Spurs, and they needed a big statement win in response.
LeBron James said the Lakers must play team defense, and against the Suns, that is exactly what they did, especially in the second half. His ice-cold free-throws helped them win the game.
But that isn’t to say this was a perfect game, as the Lakers struggled on more than one occasion with protecting the ball.
LeBron James and Luka Doncic commit 14 turnovers combined
While both the Lakers’ stars had some strong numbers on the night, especially from a scoring standpoint, they weren’t great at protecting the ball.
LeBron James committed 8 turnovers, while Luka Doncic gave up the ball 6 times against the Suns. Their combined 14 turnovers are over half of the Lakers’ turnovers as a team.
Can LeBron James still save his poor start to his 23rd NBA season?
This is a big issue, as the Lakers rank 13th in the NBA for most turnovers per game. Very few teams can compete for an NBA championship while giving up the ball as much as they do.
The turnover problem is something JJ Redick has struggled to figure out, despite having three excellent ball-handlers on his roster.
Deandre Ayton and Jarred Vanderbilt step up in Austin Reaves’ absence
It was announced recently that Austin Reaves will miss some time as he recovers from a calf strain he sustained.
In his absence, Jarred Vanderbilt claimed he could fix the Lakers’ problems on the defensive end, after he was removed from the starting lineup.
And while Vanderbilt did play well defensively, grabbing six offensive rebounds, two steals, and one block, he wasn’t the only one who made up for Reaves’ performance.
Deandre Ayton put up Reaves-like numbers on the offensive end, scoring 20 points while also grabbing 13 rebounds to help the team win.
Inefficiency and bad shots almost cost LA Lakers the game
At one point, the Lakers were up by 20 points in the fourth quarter. However, that came down to them playing hard-nosed defense against the Phoenix Suns.
It didn’t take the Suns long to cut the lead down to just 2 points with under a minute left, because the Lakers just couldn’t shoot the ball efficiently. The Suns eventually took the lead with just 12 seconds left.
LeBron James never cared about scoring… ❌
Would LeBron James already have 50k regular-season points if he focused on scoring?
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James would make clutch free throws in the win, but their problems are clear to see for everyone. The Lakers shot just 43% from the field and an abysmal 19% from beyond the arc.
Their percentage from the three-point line is absolutely unacceptable. Doncic’s 29 points and LeBron’s 26 points were great, but both stars had a rough night from deep, going a combined 3-19 from range.
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