Intrigue added to Warriors-Lakers game
For months it looked like a cakewalk on the Warriors’ schedule: Lakers at Oracle Arena on Wednesday night, following two days off, and surely a comfortable win leading up to the playoffs.
It might still turn out that way, but this could be the most interesting coaching matchup yet between coach Steve Kerr and his protege, Luke Walton.
Quite often, when these teams play, the Warriors find themselves a bit groggy after sampling the L.A. party scene. This time it’s a local issue. The boys had so much fun at Stephen Curry’s 30th birthday party Monday night, Kerr called off Tuesday’s practice partly because everyone — including himself — could use a break.
Videos from Steph’s bash reveal some hilarious revelry, including Kerr, Curry and Klay Thompson cuttin’ it up on the dance floor. (Kerr definitely has some moves, not to be confused with elegance, and may not be up for an encore any time soon.)
Curry has been declared out for Wednesday night’s game and the following three games, which makes perfect sense on the Warriors’ part. They need to be absolutely sure his right ankle is game-ready, and even at that, they might tack on a few extra days of rest.
One player who isn’t at all doubtful: Lakers forward Julius Randle, a fast-rising player who got the Warriors’ attention from the moment he hit the scene.
It dates back to October of 2015, when the Warriors, coming off their first championship of the Kerr era, played an exhibition game against the Lakers in San Diego. Randle, about to launch his rookie year, drove hard past Draymond Green, drew a foul, and was seen to be yelling “Can’t guard me!” in the aftermath.
Randle soon learned that Green (who won’t play on Wednesday night) can guard anyone, especially when motivat-
ed, but Randle has blossomed into a force. He’s an absolute beast around the basket, so dangerous that nobody seems to notice his lack of a jump shot. He just bullies his way to glory, best exemplified on Sunday when he piled up 36 points and 14 rebounds in a home victory over Cleveland. He’s been playing that way for weeks after earning his way off Walton’s bench, and now he poses a bit of an offseason dilemma for the Lakers’ front office.
Executives Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka managed to secure two maximum-salary slots for this summer’s freeagent market, clearly targeting LeBron James and Paul George. It had been assumed that Randle, a potential restricted free agent, would sign elsewhere as the Lakers cleared him off the books. Now the Lakers realize they’ll need Randle as they construct the foundation for a contender. If James and George take their sweet time making decisions, it’s possible the Lakers will have to make a call on Randle beforehand.
“He’s pretty special,” Walton said of Randle. “The crazy thing is, I still think he can be better.”
Then there’s Isaiah Thomas, still trying to re-establish his place in the league after his long recovery from a hip injury. His shooting was embarrassingly dreadful during 15 games in Cleveland — 36 percent, and only 25 percent from threepoint range — and those figures have only slightly improved (39 and 32) since joining the Lakers.
Until recently, it was disconcerting to watch Thomas try to take control of the Lakers’ offense, at the expense of rookie point guard Lonzo Ball, but the two of them seem to be figuring it out. The Lakers are 8-2 since the All-Star break, and Thomas had his best game of the season — 20 points, nine assists and five rebounds — against his old Cleveland teammates.
“The world knows what I can do and what I bring to the table,” Thomas said after that game. “I don’t need to show anybody.”
Ball is starting to reach that stage, as well, as he tries to be the NBA’s only top-flight point guard who can’t create his own outside shot. He’s proving his point with rebounding, vastly improved defense and his always-sensational court vision, to the ongoing delight of teammates, and he’s hitting just enough three-pointers, with that unorthodox release, to be a threat when he’s open.
To the relief of everyone in the Lakers’ organization, and perhaps Lonzo himself, his blustery father, LaVar, is spending a lot of time with his two other sons in Lithuania. In one of his latest and most absurd remarks, he told a Lithuanian reporter that Lonzo will leave the Lakers (and a lot of money) to play with LaMelo and LiAngelo somewhere else in the NBA. (Lonzo is signed through 2021-22.) “I want to let every NBA team know,” he said, “that Lonzo will go to any team that will take all three of my boys.”
Well, here’s how it actually works, LaVar. There isn’t a single team that views LaMelo or LiAngelo as NBA-caliber players — especially in the case of LiAngelo; the younger brother is just 16. More importantly, no team wants any part of you, and if you insist on bringing the entire family, you could wreck the whole deal for everyone. Heck of a strategy.