Lakers eager for chance to be .500
Team chemistry has been key for surging L.A.
EL SEGUNDO >> When the fourth quarter hits, it’s time for the biggest stars to hit the floor.
Right … right?
Anthony Davis was not having his best night Friday against the Toronto Raptors, managing just five shot attempts against their scheme designed to take him out of the game. The Lakers trailed by as much as 12 in the third quarter, but they were scrapping their way back with a bench-driven lineup.
When the time came for Davis’ check-in by the 8-minute mark of the fourth, Dennis Schröder made an appeal to the coaching staff after a group, which included Wenyen Gabriel and Jarred Vanderbilt as the two forwards, rolled all the way to a four-point lead. Coach Darvin Ham looked in Davis’ direction for his input. Davis said he was fine with letting the lineup continue to play.
In another minute and a half, the Lakers led by nine, romping on their way to a 37-point fourth quarter and a win.
“It’s a good thing to see, man,” Davis said after Saturday’s film session. “You sit back and, as I’m watching it, these guys are getting very comfortable. They were playing at a high level last night. And for me, seven shots, five shots, no shots, 20 shots – like, as long as we win, I’m fine, I’m happy.”
Much of the Lakers’ 8-3 record since the trade deadline can be attributed to Davis, who turned 30 on Saturday and has looked, since getting healthy, very much in his prime. In that stretch, he’s averaged a team-leading 24.5 points, 13.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks, re-emerging as the two-way force he was on the 2020 title-winning Lakers. But beating Toronto, a fast-paced team with imposing, freakish athletes especially at forward, signaled that the Lakers (33-34) now have other ways to win — which can be partially attributed to the burgeoning team chemistry of the newlook roster.
Davis pointed to the play of Schröder, who was the Lakers’ second-leading scorer when D’Angelo Russell was out, as an example. Coming off the bench Friday, the point guard had another strong effort with 23 points and seven assists.
“Guys are extremely happy for one another, even if guys aren’t playing,” Davis said. “Dennis has to now come off the bench with DLo back. It’s not a thing of, ‘Well why do I have to come off the bench the way I’ve been playing?’ It’s none of that. Guys are all in for each other, and it’s showing on the floor.”
It wasn’t the first time the Lakers have seen Russell out with the group, but Ham said it was nice to see that a six-game layoff hadn’t disrupted the smooth fit of the 27-year-old point guard into the mix. Russell’s tempo and shooting have been a “hand in glove fit” for the Lakers, Ham said, but Russell’s encouragement of his teammates has been just as uplifting — even when he was out with injury.
“He’s the biggest cheerleader for his teammates, even when he was out of the lineup, the first day he stepped foot out here, you could see how the positive energy is infectious with him,” he added. “While he’s out there on the court, even though he might have it going, he’s still out there trying to make the right play.”
As a result, the Lakers have a chance to improve to .500 for the first time this season today when they face the New York Knicks, themselves one of the hot teams since the trade deadline. While the Knicks have now lost three straight and may be without star guard Jaylen Brunson, they rattled off nine straight wins recently while pushing their way into the top six of the East.
The Lakers could be in that position soon if things break right in the upcoming stretch. Ham gave a pained chuckle thinking back on the Lakers’ 2-10 start and how hard they’ve had to claw to get back to an even record. He and the team have learned plenty of lessons, and he said it was great to see the Lakers “go out and get the type of pieces that we know can fit around our two top players in LeBron and AD.”
What might be the most rewarding, in a home-heavy March, is that he’s noticed the fans responding, too.
“Some of the excitement I saw during the later stages — really throughout the course of this last game, in particular, the way the building was rocking,” Ham said. “And even the Sunday game against the Warriors and the Memphis game. You feel that energy and that excitement coming back.”