The Lakers were looking for their 11th win of the season coming off two straight losses but things looked grim to start off the game trailing early
Despite the starters putting them in a hole, the bench came in to stop the bleeding and even took the lead at one point in the first and second quarters.
Despite another fantastic game from Lou Williams and resiliency all around, the Lakers were not able to stop a good Jazz team and fell 107-101.
Injuries Took Their Toll
The Lakers have been short handed the past few weeks and with Jose Calderon out they had to start the most interesting lineup so far.
#SuitingUpTogether tonight:
PG: @B_Ingram13
SG: @MettaWorldPeace
SF: @LuolDeng9
PF: @J30_RANDLE
C: Timofey Mozgov— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 6, 2016
Yes thats right. Metta World Peace started the game at shooting guard and Brandon Ingram was the point guard.
The average height of the starting lineup was a nice 6’9 and it went just as well as you thought it would go. The Lakers started off trailing in the first quarter by a wide margin until the Bench came in.
The starting lineup wasn’t the only thing affected by injuries tonight as Tarik Black rolled his ankle in the 4th quarter and was ruled out the rest of the game. The Catalyst also saw some time at PG because of injuries.
Lou Williams Is On 🔥
Lou Williams was coming off a game against the Grizzlies in which he scored a season high 40 points on 4-8 three pointers and looked to build on that tonight. He scored 38 points making 13-27 shots. He’s been extremely impressive this season and the last two games have shown that. He was an offensive force tonight and was barely contained by the usually suffocating Jazz defense.
My Take
The Lakers have shown great resilience at times in the young season, especially for such a young team. They aren’t anywhere near 75% of NBA teams in terms of experience, and yet they’re battling each and every game. Tonight’s game shows that by coming back from multiple deficits of 10+ points and even led at times.
Even with the Jazz missing two starters they’re a much better team than the Lakers, yet it didn’t look like there was that huge of a gap between them. While the gap does indeed exists, its mitigated by the very same thing that makes them inexperienced.
Their youth and energy helped them stay in this game and will continue to keep them in games until they’re healthy and more experienced.
Fan Takes
They need another wing who can play 10-15 mins a game.
— Dan Bailey (@drichardbailey) December 6, 2016
Injuries have definitely left the Lakers with a hole as they were already short on wings.
https://twitter.com/medrano_man/status/806014938078584832
Same.
ROTATION GOT TO BE BETTER
— UrbanLovesDaLakers (@ChaszJohnson) December 6, 2016
The rotations were definitely interesting.
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