Schröder returns to help Lakers end skid
LOS ANGELES » After a blowout loss to the Utah Jazz — their fourth straight setback — the Lakers tried to look at the silver lining: Without struggle, there can be no success.
Winning looks a heck of a lot more fun.
The Lakers (23-11) found their way back to the win column on Friday night with a 102-93 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers, thanks much in part to the return of starting point guard Dennis Schröder chipping in 22 points.
It was a different look altogether from LeBron James, who scored 28 points with 10 rebounds and seven assists. After a week of seeming weary and dead-legged, he came alive as the Lakers made their second-half comeback. He found time for fun, too: In between a pair of Marc Gasol free throws
in the third quarter, James and sidelined star Anthony Davis found time for a few rounds of rock-paper-scissors near the Lakers’ bench.
Making his first start in more than a week, Schröder looked rusty on his jump shot, hitting just 6 for 14 from the field in his return from COVID-19 quarantine under the league’s health and safety protocols. But his quickness helped the Lakers climb out of an early 13-2 hole as he scored nine points in the first quarter.
He made his best impact at the free-throw line, where he was 9 for 9. The Lakers led by as many as 16 points.
Merely having a second ballhandler seemed to juice up the Lakers and especially James, who rediscovered his place at the helm of the most dangerous transition game in the league (23 fast-break points). Pouncing on the 16 turnovers by Portland, the Lakers rang up 22 points off their mistakes.
The pivotal stretch was the third quarter, when the Lakers flipped the advantage with a 31-19 edge. James was at the forefront of the effort, snatching steals from the Blazers’ passing lanes and directing the offense with precise passing. James had five assists and three steals in the third quarter alone.
But the swagger didn’t just emanate from James: It was down the roster as well. Alex Caruso reconnected with the rim with a pair of dunks in the game, which was complemented by scrappy second-half defense on Lillard. After a few games looking rudderless, Talen Horton-Tucker stabilized, making plays out in the fast break (four assists).
Montrezl Harrell again waged guerrilla warfare from the dunker spot, finishing with 17 points and nine rebounds. On one notable third-quarter possession, Harrell notched a pair of offensive rebounds, the second a tip-in.
As the basket sank, he howled at the sky. Not only had the Lakers found the way back to winning, they had rediscovered their mojo.
Without Davis, the Lakers didn’t initially resemble the team they were in the playoffs last season when they blitzed Portland in a runaway first-round series. In the latest installment, the defense had trouble staying in front of Lillard, who flashed through traps and stunts like quicksilver — or hit the long balls he’s become known for over the top.
One of the only times the Lakers could slow down Lillard during the first half was late in the second quarter, when Horton-Tucker stepped on his right foot as he fired a 3-pointer. Lillard still made the shot on his way to 24 first-half points.
But the Blazers’ shooting cooled off after halftime:
Portland was just 17 for 45 from the field in the second half and the giveaways piled up.
Much of that was the trapping of Lillard that helped the Lakers prevail in the postseason. The Blazers’ franchise star attempted just nine of his 24 shots in the second half, forcing his teammates to try to step up.
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