The implications of the Lakers game tonight were huge. Lose against the Rockets and you start off this crucial late-season run on a broken foot. Win and your playoff picture looks much rosier, though there is still a long road to go. The Lakers next three opponents are the Pelicans, Grizzlies, and Pelicans again. That's a plausible four-game winning streak if you get the W over the Rockets. Thankfully, that's exactly what the Lakeshow did!
It didn't look good in the first half. They looked lethargic, and effort levels were questioned around the board. It all materialized on defense, where they were just allowed the easiest, most soul-killing threes and dunks to a team that wasn't even playing out of their mind.
But then, a spirited run to end the third quarter and start the fourth saw the Lakers pull ahead for good in the final minutes. Oh yea, and James Harden fouled out while Chris Paul/Mike D'Antoni got teched for jawing at the ref - which put this game out of reach with a minute to play. Nothing more glorious than seeing two of the biggest ref bitchers in Harden and Paul getting equalized by the men in stripes!
The two biggest lines of the night were by LeBron James(29-11-6-1-1, 11/23) and Brandon Ingram(27-13-1, 8/16). Ingram looked so good all throughout the game(save for a few first half airballs), that you could really say he played like the second star we all deemed him to be in the preseason. Harden scored 30 to keep his 30+ point streak alive. That's 32 games in a row that Harden has scored 30, good for 2nd all-time behind Wilt. Check out the Rhythm of the Game to see how this tight game unfolded, and Takeaways for afterthoughts.
Rhythm Of The Game
I liked the way the Lakers came out to start this one. You could tell they knew the circumstances. They knew the odds of them making the playoffs would be dictated by how much effort they put into this home stretch. You could feel the sense of urgency in the active play of Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram, and JaVale McGee, who are so integral to the game plan when they're doing well. I was feeling good about this game until about two minutes left in the first quarter, when the Rockets began to pull away off a combo of made three-balls and lockdown defense. To my dismay, the Rockets got the lead up to ten to end the first period, 32-22.
The Rockets controlled the tempo for most of the second quarter with their usual suspects of Harden foul-hunting and three's, to go with an uncharacteristic amount of points in the paint. Blame that on the Lakers non-focus on the defensive end, everyone was defending poorly except maybe BI. It stayed around a 10-12 point game until the Lakers caught some breaks and executed on the offensive end.
They narrowed it to four off a pair of LeBron free throws. A couple plays later Staples was treated to a scare when LeBron went down hard grabbing his elbow after corralling a rebound. Replay showed that James' own friend Chris Paul was the man yanking him to the ground! That little guy almost hyperextended his elbow there. LeBron and the Lakeshow fought through it and ended up down by six at the half, 52-58. Overall, the Lakeshow didn't look very good in the first half. Only a few people looked like they were fully trying in the game. We were lucky to be down by only six.
The third began, and things really fell off the rails as the Rockets ballooned the lead to nineteen, 79-62. Just Chris Paul and James Harden going iso and occasionally kicking it to a sniper for three. The typical Houston gameplan. LA just wasn't converting easy looks at the hoop, and it was KILLING them. Combine that with a lack of defensive stops and no ball-pushing in transition...and you had some LA shit stew. Things were looking mega bleak for the Lakers, but a spirited, last second 15-4 run saw them cut the lead to seven, 90-83. We were still in this!
The fourth quarter began and the Lakers came charging out of the gates. KCP's three-pointer came alive as the Lakers brought it to a single possession game in the early going. It was a tense, back and forth affair heading into the final minutes, as Brandon Ingram tied it up with a free throw 97-all. Bron made a free throw of his own to give the Lakers their first lead pretty much all game
Seconds later, a BEAUTIFUL LeBron hangtime floater put the Lakers by four, 97-101. James Harden tried to take the game back into his hands, but he FOULED out off a LeBron charge! Harden had been in foul trouble all game, and LeBron was the guy to give him the final penalty. Might've been the first charge I've seen LeBron take in a Laker uniform. We still had 1:30 to go though and Chris Paul on the Rockets. He immediately responded by nailing a transition layup to bring the Houston deficit to four. We weren't over just yet.
55 seconds to play. Brandon Ingram ended up with the ball and he drew a foul on Chris Paul. Ingram was about to go to the line but Chris Paul got T'd for bitching to the ref! Then Mike D'Anthoni got T'd up! That gave the Lakers two technical free throws on top of the two Ingram freebies with only 30 seconds to play! 101-109 with barely any time remaining. Those technical fouls sealed the deal. Lakers win 106-111!
Takeaways
Wow.....the Lakers actually won a game.....that was important???? And had consequences??? I'm shocked! This team previously acted like a pubescent teenager going to middle school in must-win games not two weeks ago, and now they're out here beating good ones! I'm here for this.
Bron played excellent as seen in his stat line above, but I was so impressed with Ingram tonight. There was a key possession where he got switched onto Chris Paul beyond the arc. Paul tried to shake him, but he just couldn't get SHIT off his lanky arms. Ingram puts up so many great defensive sequences on stars players on late-game possessions, and it often gets overlooked.
His defense is such a subtle perk to his game because too often people focus on the expectations that came with his offense. When people anoint you the next Kevin Durant because of your similar body type, they understandably focus on your offensive game over defensive. But Ingram's calling card is going to be his two-way versatility down the line. Tonight is one of those games where I feel thankful we didn't give up Ingram and half the team for Anthony Davis. There's still some good players to be developed inside these guys. I just hope the Lakers as an organization can capitalize on them.
Aside from the two big lines, the Lakers role players really came up incredibly huge. Josh Hart only poured in four points and two rebounds, but you had to actually watch this game to understand the energy he brought to the Lakers during their rousing third and fourth quarter runs. He was diving on the floor for 50/50 balls, and sank an aggressive, momentum-swinging transition layup when he created the chance.
Trade deadline 3-and-D pickup Reggie Bullock also went 4/8 from three, including an enormous triple that pushed the game from a single possession game to two in the last minutes! Kuzma had an off-game offensively, but he was still out there bringing energy on the boards and defense. Plus KCP with his mid-game three-making to keep us in it. Role players came up huge tonight, it was a team-wide effort.
To wrap things up, let's not forget arguably the most important stat of the Lakers night: 81% from the free throw line. That respectable free throw clip was the reason they created space on the scoreboard at the end! If they didn't hit their free throws earlier, they would've had an even bigger hole to dig themselves out of down the stretch. Ingram himself was 11/14 from the line while the team shot 27-33. Free throws have been a glaring problem all year for them, but one thing the Lakers seem to have in common in all their big wins is the free throw line stat doesn't look like doo doo. You'd think there was some kind of pattern here.....like a part of their game they should all focus on......to win important games........
Nah it's probably nothing.
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