It wasn’t too difficult to determine what went unsuitable within the Lakers’ 120-101 loss to the Magic on Saturday. Listed here are the important thing takeaways from a recreation by which the Lakers by no means threatened.
Overwhelmed on the boards
Coach Darvin Ham didn’t mince phrases when speaking about his staff’s defensive rebounding, a gap so obvious that Orlando grabbed 19 offensive rebounds and scored 36 second-chance factors.
“You may’t scheme rebounding. You’ve received to wish to get the rattling ball. Plain and easy,” Ham stated. “The shot goes up, in case your opponent is in your space, you’ve received to get hits, put our bodies on our bodies and be essentially the most aggressive one to the ball. That’s it. There’s no play I can draw as much as get extra rebounds. There’s no play I can draw as much as have extra guys there. And once we do have extra guys there, we’re exhibiting clips with 4 or 5 white jerseys and one blue jersey within the center and that blue jersey is arising with the ball. I don’t know.
“Once more, it’s one thing we’ve received to repeatedly work at and acknowledge once we’re doing it good, and do an excellent job and once we do a poor job. Final recreation, we did a fairly good job with that. We had three guys double-digit rebounds. Tonight, it simply wasn’t there.”
Anthony Davis stated if he have been making an attempt to beat the Lakers, he’d ship waves of gamers on the glass.
“I imply, I might,” Davis stated. “The scouting report: assault the glass, get out and run. I imply, that’s been our Achilles’ heel. That’s what’s going to lose us video games. We all know our drawback. We received to repair it.”
The Lakers have been outscored 117-54 on second-chance factors.
“We’ve received to determine it out as a result of that’s positively been our pattern,” LeBron James stated. “Offensive rebounds, factors off turnovers. We do an excellent job of getting a cease on the primary possession, however we permit offensive rebounds after which we allowed them to attain off the offensive rebounds. So, we received to do a greater job of that and get that underneath wraps.”
Falling behind quick
If it wasn’t the rebounding, one other acquainted drawback price the Lakers on Saturday. For the fifth time in six video games , the staff fell behind by no less than 10 factors within the first quarter.
“Simply their effort. Their vitality. They’re down our bodies. We’re down our bodies. And so the sport principally comes right down to strategy, psychological strategy,” Ham stated. “Their vitality, their effort, they outworked us. And due to that vitality and energy, they noticed the ball go in. They did an excellent job of simply enjoying quick repeatedly, masking for each other defensively and simply pounding us on the glass.”
Lakers coach Darvin Ham had a lot to be essential of after a loss to Orlando on Saturday evening.
(Gary McCullough / Related Press)
Cam Reddish, who performed key minutes within the Lakers’ win on Thursday, struggled in Orlando. However he was removed from alone.
“Looks as if it’s our vitality. Different groups are popping out and enjoying a little bit bit extra aggressive,” Davis stated. “It’s not even a talent or expertise. It’s the offensive rebounds, turnovers resulting in transition factors, 50-50 balls. It’s these sorts of performs that get us down. These are issues that we’ve got to return out with a mind-set to begin the fourth quarter that we’re going to regulate these issues. Any time we’re in a position to maintain a staff to at least one shot, it’s laborious to beat us. However we haven’t been ready to try this.”
Reinforcements coming?
After the sport, Ham stated Taurean Prince and Rui Hachimura would bear evaluations Sunday, maybe clearing the best way for one or each to get again on the courtroom Monday in Miami towards the Warmth.
“It positively helps when you’ve got greater our bodies. I imply, we’ve got three of our greater our bodies out proper with accidents in Rui, [Jarred Vanderbilt] and TP. So, I imply, it could assist,” James stated. “However we positively received to do a greater job of, once we do field out, of serving to. Generally we’re doubling guys and we get a free crasher that’s coming in to crash the glass. Generally we’re simply ball watching and giving up offensive rebounds. In order that’s one thing that we received to look on in movie and see which ways in which we could be higher.”
Tough one for Russell
D’Angelo Russell was one of the vital vocal gamers in Austin Reaves’ ear, encouraging him to shoot by his mini-slump to begin the season.
After Russell shot one for 10 from three-point vary Saturday, Reaves stated he’d be prepared to return the favor — if it was crucial.
Magic guard Anthony Black, left, tries to chop off a drive by Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell, who missed 9 of his 10 photographs from deep on Saturday.
(Gary McCullough / Related Press)
“One factor about DLo is I don’t should say something to him. Clearly, I do. Simply because our relationship and the way shut we’ve gotten on and off the courtroom, however one factor DLo don’t lack is confidence,” Reaves stated. “It’s a good looking factor to see typically, as a result of I really feel like if all people had that confidence, then some individuals can be higher off. However yeah, I don’t suppose he performed a nasty recreation tonight. Struggled taking pictures the ball. However that occurs.
“And lots of people will return and trash him for the sport that he had, however that’s all it’s. No person’s frightened about him.”
Reaves will get again and James nonetheless rolls
After a robust second half within the Lakers’ win towards the Clippers, Reaves had his greatest offensive recreation of the season Saturday, scoring 20 on seven-for-11 taking pictures, together with three three-point photographs.
“I used to be actually simply enjoying the sport the best way that I’ve all the time performed the sport. Assured. Simply play laborious. And play the best method,” Reaves stated. “Yeah, that’s actually it.”
James performed 35 minutes, he and Reaves the one Lakers who completed with a optimistic plus-minus.
James scored 24 on Saturday and the Lakers have outscored groups by 57 factors when he has been on the courtroom.
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