Editor’s note: This is the Purple & Bold Lakers newsletter published by reporter Kyle Goon on Friday, January 29. To receive the newsletter in your inbox, please sign up here.
When certain aspects of the game did not appear as quickly as he hoped, LeBron James was reluctant to admit it.
Earlier, he played down questions about whether he was physically prepared after a short offseason. He cleverly avoided the question of how he kept his head sharp. On Thursday night, he even made a (somewhat suspiciously) claim that he was not tired from his 7 road trips in the 18th season: “My mentality has never reached such a point,’Well, this is A long road trip, I was exhausted or tired. I don’t even think about this.”
That’s why when he said that the Lakers are still looking for a new lineup this season, it’s very compelling-and why you should pay attention.
“A lot of our games are also big exercises for us,” he said. “We have to learn instantly, and the coach is still learning different lineups to see which combinations work and which ones are not. Myself, I play certain lineups there — certain lineups I don’t play, certain lines I play The lineup… This is a learning experience, and all of us are working hard to solve this problem.”
For the star of the team that won the championship in one fell swoop in the first quarter of the season and started 10-0 on the road, this seems like a surprising admission. But especially on Thursday night in Detroit, the 11-man rotation and some difficulties in adapting to new players were well illustrated in the 107-92 loss to the Pistons, which marked a low-level league that could have reached the top quickly. Of.
On the one hand, the Lakers rank third among groups that have played at least 75 minutes in the league. Their starting lineup has a net worth of +17.1. When they share the court, they have both elite offense (121 offensive rating) and very good defense (103.9 defensive rating). Any lineup of James and Davis is good (they outscored their opponents by 128 points in 378 minutes), but Marc Gasol, Kentavios Caldwell-Pop and Dennis Schroe The pitch, shooting and dribble scores provided by Germany (respectively) create a perfect ecosystem for most opponents.
On the other hand, some of the Lakers’ most played lineups don’t seem to work at all. This includes a group of James and other forwards including Markieff Morris, Montrez Harrell and Kyle Kuzma and Wesley Matthews (minus 12.4). When James came off the bench in the first quarter, the lineup of Davis, Matthews, Kuzma, Harrell and Schroder (-17.9) didn’t seem to work, especially on the defensive side, even though Davis Is recognized by the team as the best defensive player.
The craziest fans also have other questions: Why doesn’t Alex Caruso play more games? In almost any group he has played for, he can have a positive net impact due to his stable defense and offensive comprehensiveness and improved three-point shooting percentage. But his average playing time on the team ranked ninth. Others want to see more of Taron Horton-Tucker, who has many ups and downs when playing meaningful minutes, but full of potential-even Jared Dudley in Danny In a recent episode of Green’s podcast, “He has to play.”
There are many factors at play in creating a lineup that lasts the entire season, many of which have nothing to do with statistics. Frank Vogel talked about this last week when he talked about why he played the James Kuzma Harrell Morris Matthews lineup (The Athletic’s Jovan Buha aptly calls it the “Meh lineup”).
“A lot of times, I try to give players the playing time they deserve to influence our team,” Vogel said. “Sometimes this leads to an imperfect lineup.”
Here are some ideas related to the lineup discussion that helped shape what the Lakers are doing. These ideas seem to make sense, and some don’t.
– New players need time to blend in: One thing immediately stands out: four of the top eight players with the most minutes on the court are new players. After James and Davis are Schroeder and Harrell, after Caldwell-Pop and Kuzma are Gasol and Matthews. Is this the right balance based on pure talent? Maybe not. What is a bit worrying is that if it is understandable in a strong team, the key production data of all four, including scoring, has fallen this season compared to last season.
But the truth is that newcomers need more repetition than returnees. James and Schroder need to figure out their tempo to exchange possession responsibilities. Gasol needs to find a way to make more contributions on the offensive end. Harrell needs a better defensive relationship. Matthews needs to find his way from the fear at the beginning of the season. Especially in a season where there are not many considerable training camps and there is almost no practice time due to the heavy schedule and logistically challenging COVID-19 agreement, the coaching staff is just trying to provide new supplements and as much playing time as possible. Even the production does not always reach the minute.
This may have something to do with Caruso. If the Lakers think it is necessary, he can obviously play more. But he has proven: In some final lineups, Vogel trusts his ability to integrate into the system enough to use him. He added that maintaining Caruso’s health is an advantage for the team.
“Obviously, Alex is just someone we trust and understand our system,” he said. “We want to be able to protect him in 72 games (matches). He played very hard. I know not to overplay, don’t let him get hit, and put him in a vulnerable position.”
-Qualifications are important to this team: Holden Tucker fans, you are seen and heard. But in a veteran team, a 20-year-old player is obviously a weird thing in the rotation, despite his talent. Although Horton-Tucker’s efficiency seems to be comparable to that of Matthews and others, it takes some extraordinary efforts to get him to surpass Matthews in the rotation in the regular season. Part of the reason is that Matthews is a long-term player. His NBA starter won his favor, in part because he played extensively in the playoffs.
By many standards, Matthews did not start well (averaging 4.7 points, 1.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 36.4% of three-pointers), even considering the decline in his playing time, his per game The average score per minute and per round will also remain the lowest point of his career. But the Lakers are playing long-term games, not short-term games. Matthews is unlikely to have Rajon Rondo’s influence in the playoffs, but as a veteran, he is more likely to be ready for the playoffs, and Horton Tucker is even in the regular The performances were fierce and fierce in the game. There are some great nights like him in Detroit, 5 of 7 shots with assists, and uncertain nights like his 1 of 8 shots in Houston. Because Matthews needs fewer balls than Horton Tucker, it helps him see more of the court.
This also provides playing time for players like Morris. He did not find his shooting touch during the magical playoffs, but had a lot of off-court chemistry with other returning players, took the least trades to come back, and maybe The playoff time is still very important. It pays to keep him happy in a stable role, and this way is invisible to ordinary fans.
-The Lakers already know what they think of certain lineups: The Lakers finally did it on Wednesday night, and this may be their best lineup. Davis served as center, James served as point guard, Caruso, Caldwell-Pop and Schroeder were responsible for defense and shooting. They united 13-0 and almost defeated Philadelphia on the road. This goes back to a lesson in the 2020 playoffs: James, Davis and three outside players formed the best and most invincible group.
“In terms of defensive speed, this lineup has some advantages around the defensive speed of AD and Brown as two big men and what they can do,” Vogel said. “But Alex, KCP, and Dennis are clearly elite perimeter speed and containment capabilities. And they have a lot of space to kick off and kick the ball, and play that game against AD in the fifth position. So there is some positive On the one hand, this will not be the lock I use every night.”
It begs the question: why not? If the Lakers can use that lineup to crush everyone, why not play every night? So far, this lineup has played only 19 minutes, 19 points higher than the opponent.
Of all the topics, this involves the most guesswork. But a reasonable point is that if the Lakers know they have a weaponized lineup that can be destroyed at any time, why should they prove it in the regular season? Kuzma said assistant coach Jason Kidd has pointed out over and over again that the regular season is a rehearsal for the playoffs, trying to figure out effective ways to fix it, and make sure it does for the best seven-game playoff series. Be prepared.
The Lakers know that the lineup works-there is no need to fix it. As the playoffs approach, expect to see more, but for now, it is already very sharp.
– At least one player has a relevant contract situation: of every key player on the team, only one-Schroder-has not been locked for a long time. Given that they traded the 27-year-old with Danny Green and first-round picks, the Lakers want to keep him, at least so far, he seems interested.
Schroder started the season well, but his efficiency has declined since the first few weeks. It is worth noting that his three-point shooting percentage is only 30.3%, a sharp drop compared with last season. But at present, with the possible contract extension in February, keeping him comfortable in the starting position and playing less than 31 minutes a night is in the best long-term interests of the Lakers. Although Caruso may knock on the door for some of his time, this may not happen as long as the Lakers are negotiating to maintain Schroder’s long-term contract.
– Vogel believes that changing roles helps keep certain players engaged: Another thing that helps explain the weird grouping or insisting on lineups that don’t seem to work is Vogel’s attempts to bring different players on different nights. Come with different energies. For example, Kuzma is a more aggressive scorer in the starting lineup. When Harrell is not playing with other big men, such as Gasol or Davis, he has more room to work. When Matthews is the only true guard in the lineup, he can find the ball more and he is more likely to defend the leading ball handler.
Diversity is the spice of life and the spark in the regular marathon. Sometimes the team has to do something to confuse it. During the warrior dynasty, coach Steve Kerr was famous for letting his players make their own plans on the whiteboard. These things don’t necessarily win a single game, but they inject some fun or necessary changes into the culture. So yes, some lineups don’t always make sense-but in general, the Lakers are still winning. The depth of the team may be difficult to manage, but it also means that the Lakers have more room for mistakes while meeting some personal needs:
For example, it is no coincidence that Horton-Tucker broke out continuous DNP in his hometown of Chicago, and it is no coincidence that Kuzma replaced Morris in his hometown of Michigan and Davis. For the fans, this may not seem like a big deal, but the players appreciate these things.
So yes, a new and unfamiliar lineup is a learning experience. But the back-to-back defeats in Philadelphia and Detroit do not indicate that a team that is still at the best start of the NBA will fall into fatalism. The lineup is worthy of attention, but this is not what makes Lakers fans heartbreaking. The impact is usually more than seen.
Editor’s note: Thank you for reading reporter Kyle Goon’s Purple and Daring Lakers newsletter. To receive the newsletter in your inbox, please sign up here.
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Post time: Aug-20-2021
