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dave mcmenamin
LOS ANGELES — Real stakes are at stake for lakers In the NBA Cup quarterfinals – a cash prize of $530,000 per player and a second Cup championship in three years for the franchise dependent on the outcome – L.A. was swept in a 132–119 loss San Antonio Spurs On Wednesday.
The Spurs exposed the Lakers’ already suspect perimeter defense, which ranked in the bottom five in the league in opponents’ 3-point percentage (38.2%), by shooting 17-38 (44.7%) from outside and scoring 24 points in an elimination game for the in-season tournament.
When the Spurs weren’t launching from beyond the arc, their guards were getting into the paint, causing L.A.’s interior defense to be compromised, the Lakers had no choice but to draw fouls often. San Antonio went 29 of 36 from the foul line compared to 17 of 23 for the Lakers.
And while the Spurs weren’t hurting LA in those areas, they were burning the Lakers in transition. According to GeniusIQ, San Antonio scored 35 points in transition on Wednesday — a season high and the most allowed in a game by the Lakers this season.
Despite LA’s 17–7 start to the season, the loss mirrors several of the Lakers’ other lopsided losses in the first quarter of the regular season schedule.
And that’s when the agent of one of the team’s most prominent players announced he didn’t believe the Lakers were built to make a long run in the postseason.
Rich Paul, CEO of Clutch Sports and longtime friend and representative Lebron Jamessaid as much at the debut of his new podcast, “Game Over with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul,” released Monday.
“I don’t think they have what it takes to get to the Western Conference finals,” Paul said. “I don’t think they have enough to really compete from that standpoint.”
It appears that Paul’s client disagrees with him.
After the loss to the Spurs, James was asked if L.A.’s performance in the NBA Cup would have any impact on his team’s playoff outlook and the 23-year-old veteran said the discussion was completely premature.
“I can’t think about what we can do in the playoffs in December,” James said after finishing with 19 points, 15 rebounds and 8 assists. “What I can say is that the habits we form every month during the regular season [are what is important]If we’re in a position to make the postseason and be able to get to that point, well, we’ve just got to make it,
“But as far as talking about what kind of losses we’re going to make in the postseason in December, that’s not right for the basketball gods, not for me.”
Lakers coach JJ Redick didn’t talk about the Lakers’ championship chances before Wednesday’s game, but he did address the nature of being part of an organization like the Lakers, where seemingly everyone has an opinion — good or bad — about where the team stands day to day.
“Because sports is an emotional game, both in terms of participation and fans, it’s hard not to overreact,” Redick said.
Yet a measured tone of agreement was heard in the Lakers’ postgame comments pointing to concerns about their defense.
“They were just going down, driving and kicking,” he said. luka doncicJoe’s 35 points and eight assists weren’t enough to hide L.A.’s problems on defense. “Each of us has to be better.”
Redick said: “I think controlling the basketball is probably the hardest thing for our team right now.”
James pointed to “having five guys on a string” as a key for the Lakers to be cohesive on defense, with communication strengthening in covering the court.
Meanwhile, San Antonio won its 12th consecutive game Victor WembanyamaWho has been sidelined due to a calf injury.
L.A. doesn’t have a Defensive Player of the Year candidate on the injured list waiting to rejoin. That’s what the Lakers have, and if they don’t improve together, Paul’s comments may prove more prescient than they were at the time.
“The spirit here is still high. We know we can do this,” austin reeves Said. “But we have to be a group that protects with five people.”
