LeBron Misses Monday's Game as the Lakers Lose in Utah, Drop to 2-8
11/08/22 • 33 min
1 Listener
Lakers lose, 139-116 with LeBron James on the sidelines.
Darvin Ham said following Monday's game that he didn't come to Los Angeles to lose, and the Lakers didn't bring him to LA to lose... but that's what the team is doing right now. Monday's 139-116 loss to the Jazz in Utah dropped them to 2-8, an already big hole in a brutally competitive conference. LeBron James missed Monday's game with a nagging foot injury, and Ham said they'll have to monitor his minutes going forward. That's not good. Patrick Beverley and Lonnie Walker IV missed the game with illness, leaving the Lakers very shorthanded against a Jazz team that is now the best in the West.
So from a talent standpoint, the Lakers really didn't have much business winning.
Still, giving up 76 points in the first half? 139 overall? After 114 vs. Cleveland, and 130 vs. Utah on Friday? The wheels are coming off that defense that played so well earlier in the year, something Ham says needs to change quickly.
This team, Ham says, will turn a corner and should bottle these moments so that when they have good team problems everyone complains about, they can remember this stretch to understand how far they've come. Let's assume that day comes... where will the Lakers be when it happens?
Meanwhile, it's pretty amazing that the one big bright spot for these 2-8 Lakers? Russell Westbrook, whose transformation into killer sixth man continued on Monday. 24 points on 8-14 shooting, with five dimes. That he's the one thing Lakers fans seem genuinely excited about is quite a turn of events.
But what happens next?
HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky
SEGMENT 1: The Lakers are outmanned with LeBron and others on the sidelines, losing to Utah and falling to 2-8.
SEGMENT 2: LeBron James is going to be treated with care going forward. Do the Lakers have the flexibility to make that work?
SEGMENT 3: Russell Westbrook... silver lining!
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Lakers lose, 139-116 with LeBron James on the sidelines.
Darvin Ham said following Monday's game that he didn't come to Los Angeles to lose, and the Lakers didn't bring him to LA to lose... but that's what the team is doing right now. Monday's 139-116 loss to the Jazz in Utah dropped them to 2-8, an already big hole in a brutally competitive conference. LeBron James missed Monday's game with a nagging foot injury, and Ham said they'll have to monitor his minutes going forward. That's not good. Patrick Beverley and Lonnie Walker IV missed the game with illness, leaving the Lakers very shorthanded against a Jazz team that is now the best in the West.
So from a talent standpoint, the Lakers really didn't have much business winning.
Still, giving up 76 points in the first half? 139 overall? After 114 vs. Cleveland, and 130 vs. Utah on Friday? The wheels are coming off that defense that played so well earlier in the year, something Ham says needs to change quickly.
This team, Ham says, will turn a corner and should bottle these moments so that when they have good team problems everyone complains about, they can remember this stretch to understand how far they've come. Let's assume that day comes... where will the Lakers be when it happens?
Meanwhile, it's pretty amazing that the one big bright spot for these 2-8 Lakers? Russell Westbrook, whose transformation into killer sixth man continued on Monday. 24 points on 8-14 shooting, with five dimes. That he's the one thing Lakers fans seem genuinely excited about is quite a turn of events.
But what happens next?
HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky
SEGMENT 1: The Lakers are outmanned with LeBron and others on the sidelines, losing to Utah and falling to 2-8.
SEGMENT 2: LeBron James is going to be treated with care going forward. Do the Lakers have the flexibility to make that work?
SEGMENT 3: Russell Westbrook... silver lining!
Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!
Built Bar
Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.
BetOnline
BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!
LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNBA
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Previous Episode
The Lakers lose to Cavaliers. Anthony Davis Scores No Fourth Quarter Points for Third Straight Game
It was fun while it lasted.
The Lakers have fallen back into (even earlier) early season habits around bad shooting and stagnant offense. Both were on display Sunday as the Lakers lost to Cleveland at the Crypt, falling to 2-7 on the year with a Monday game against the surprisingly excellent Utah Jazz (who spanked the Lakers in LA on Friday). Anthony Davis was strong early, but invisible down the stretch, scoring no points in the fourth quarter for the third straight game. He only took two shots in the second half, and while in previous games some of the late game invisibility can be attributed to his recurring back problem, that didn't seem to be an issue Sunday.
So what gives? Is it an AD problem? Something related to the rest of the offense? A problem with a deteriorating defense?
Yes, yes, and yes.
This was not a Dear Diary night for the supporting cast, either. Russell Westbrook was fantastic (particularly early), scoring 12 first quarter points and finishing with 19. He also singlehandedly outscored the rest of the bench, which isn't good. Lonnie Walker IV had an off night, and Kendrick Nunn, starting for an ill Pat Beverley, scored no points. None. Zero.
After, Darvin Ham said those guys need to be better. And he's right! But is that, in broad terms, a fair expectation? Have the Lakers built the type of roster where supporting players should be expected to contribute at the level the Lakers will need in order to make any noise this season? (Any good noise, at least?)
Much to unpack as the Danger! lights are flashing bright.
HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky
SEGMENT 1: The Lakers lose and the offense falters again.
SEGMENT 2: Why isn't AD performing late in games?
SEGMENT 3: Darvin lays down a marker for the supporting cast. Is it fair, though?
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Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.
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BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!
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Next Episode
Are the Lakers More Likely to Trade Anthony Davis Before Russell Westbrook?
Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka were trending today, and these days that's never a good thing. Fans seem to have been angry about commentary (including from The Athletic's Shams Charania) that the Lakers won't be trading the two first round picks they currently control ('27 and '29) if the team continues to perform as it has. The reasoning - no trade would save the season, and they'd be better off waiting. Is that correct? What kind of option tree are the Lakers even looking at right now? With LeBron banged up and a subpar supporting cast?
Which leads to an interesting hypothetical - is it possible Anthony Davis is the one who gets moved this year? Before Russell Westbrook? Could it be both? What would an A.D. trade look like? Would it be for a star? For depth pieces? Picks and maybe a young good-but-not-star player?
And what kind of return would Davis even fetch right now?
And has Westbrook's value changed, given his success as a sixth man? What would it mean for the Lakers if teams no longer viewed him as an automatic buyout? Just a contract to acquire and quickly get rid of? Could that actually give Pelinka some options down the road?
Finally, the Lakers are getting calls from all across Lakers Nation to get off their collective duff and do something before this season washes away. The team , and the franchise for that matter, is undoubtedly in a hole. But is there a trade that would help them genuinely climb out? If not just for this year, to lay the foundation for next season? Or would it just be best to put down the shovels for a while, rather than risk a bad deal that just makes the hole deeper?
A one or two year slide could easily be a five or six year collapse, if management isn't smart. (Setting aside, for a moment, how much faith anyone has in Pelinka's ability to put this back together again.)
HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky
SEGMENT 1: The Lakers aren't currently likely to make a trade sacrificing their remaining first rounders if the situation doesn't improve... and it may not improve without trading the first rounders.
SEGMENT 2: What is Anthony Davis's trade value? How about Westbrook's?
SEGMENT 3: Are the Lakers smart just to do nothing for now?
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Built Bar
Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.
BetOnline
BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!
LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNBA
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