Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers

The Memphis Grizzlies have been a very good team this season, and have been flat-out excellent over the last month or so—one of the best teams in the NBA both offensively and defensively.

So for the Lakers, who have not exactly set the world on fire over their last 11 games, a visit from Memphis to the Crypt represented a major test. And while it wasn't easy—quite frankly, it got a little hairy in the fourth—the Lakers ultimately passed, winning 116-110. This was truly a team effort, one that had to please JJ Redick greatly. Anthony Davis led the way, dominating on both ends to finish with 40 points and 16 rebounds. But Austin Reaves (19 points) provided some punch (a much better effort than in Friday's loss, where Reaves looked very rusty after five games off).

And in his return to the lineup, LeBron finished with 18/8/8.

It wasn't the best James game you'll see from a statistical standpoint, but he was a big part of the defensive energy the Lakers put out, particularly in the first half, that pushed the Lakers to a big early lead they never gave up. Cam Reddish and Max Christie (who stayed in the starting lineup) both did enough offensively to keep Memphis honest, while also elevating the team's defensive intensity.

So on the heels of a good defensive game Friday, have the Lakers found something? It's hard to say. Memphis, as Redick noted in his halftime interview, doesn't run a lot of pick and roll, meaning they didn't test that hyperswitching strategy the Lakers often deploy. James was a catalyst for the upgraded intensity (he plays too many minutes to ignore the defensive side of the ball). Can he bring that, if not every night, most of them? Especially if the Lakers can get by with fewer points from him? How much consistency is it reasonable to expect from James? Can the Lakers get enough from the supporting cast from night to night to allow LeBron to do 15-20% more defensively?

Is Max Christie part of the equation to tie all of this together? As a starter on Sunday, it sure seemed he might be.

These are ultimately the types of questions that will determine the team's upside, and how Rob Pelinka might feel in upgrading the roster before the deadline. What the Lakers did defensively, especially in the first half, is a potential game-changer if anything like that can be done with some consistency. They used activity and effort to hold Memphis to 46 points in the first 24 minutes. That effort and activity translated to good movement on the other end, too.

So was it one night, or are the Lakers maybe, maybe, just maybe turning the corner a bit?

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: LeBron James returns, the Lakers crank it up defensively. 

SEGMENT 2: A badly needed win over a quality team. 

SEGMENT 3: Can the Lakers repeat a winning formula? 

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Anthony Davis scored 40 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, and after missing two games, LeBron James returned to the lineup, where he scored 18 points, had 8 rebounds, and dished out 8 assists as the Lakers beat the visiting Memphis Grizzlies 116-110. 

The Lakers will look to continue their winning ways Thursday night at Sacramento.Lakers, LA Lakers, Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Rui, Austin Reeves, NBA, Lakers Post cast, JJ Redick, Dalton Knecht, Lakers vs Grizzlies, Los Angeles Lakers vs Memphis Grizzlies

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Give the Lakers credit. They played hard Friday in Minnesota, and particularly in the second half, they played defense. 

But the trend of horrible offense, interrupted by a couple competent performances, continued as the purple and gold fell 97-87, their eighth loss in 11 games. The Lakers turned the ball over 11 times in the first quarter alone, en route to 21 for the game. They shot 38% from the field, 29% from 3-point range, and were only 11-17 from the free throw line. 

It was as inept a showing as you'll find. Only one starter was over 50% from the floor (Max Christie, at 5-9... and he compensated for that by turning the ball over four times). 

Austin Reaves was very out of rhythm after missing his last five games. D'Angelo Russell was 2-10 from the floor, and missed six of seven 3's. The list goes on. 

On a night where LeBron James wasn't with the team—and no, JJ Redick doesn't know when he'll be back—the Lakers simply can't absorb this much negative production on that side of the floor and expect to win. 

It doesn't get any easier Sunday, with a hot Memphis team coming to the Crypt. And at some point, if his absence continues folks will need an update on James and why he's not with the team. Is it the foot? Burnout? And how long will he be away? 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky 

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Anthony Edwards scored 23 points including 16 in the second half and former Laker Julius Randle added 21 as the Minnesota Timberwolves outlasted the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 97-87. For the second straight game LeBron James didn’t play, as he’s been excused from personal reasons. In his absence, Anthony Davis had 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Austin Reeves scored 18 in his return to the lineup. The Lakers will look to get on the winning side of things Sunday night when they’ll host the Memphis Grizzlies.

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The Lakers are back in action, after a long (by NBA standards) stretch between games, facing the Timberwolves tonight in Minnesota. 

And while Austin Reaves (questionable) might be on the floor, LeBron James didn't even make the trip. He's out for tonight, and may not play on Sunday at home against Memphis, thanks to an injured foot. (No announcements have been made in that regard.) Were James to miss Sunday's game, he'd get about two weeks off, while only costing him and the Lakers three games (including the one James missed last weekend against Portland), because after Memphis the Lakers don't play again until next Thursday.

That's an almost unheard of amount of rest. 

Hopefully, whether LeBron sits for that whole stretch or even plays Sunday, that gets his body back where it needs to be. And, for that matter, his mind. Because in year 22, everything that makes it hard physically to play at the level he's accustomed to is arguably even harder mentally. 

How JJ Redick juggles the lineup without James available becomes interesting, especially if Reaves can't play. How can he balance the offense and the defense? Can he find anough ballhandling against a quality Minnesota team? 

Meanwhile, an interesting feature from The Athletic, surveying front office people about the best front offices in the league. Not surprisingly, Oklahoma City led by Sam Presti are at the top of the list (followed by Boston and Brad Stevens). The Lakers... didn't get a single vote. Setting aside questions about what Rob Pelinka and Co. deserve, or whether he's punished for being relatively unpopular among his peers, or even if nobody ever likes voting for stuff that gives the Lakers credit for anything. Or even that none of those things change the fact that the Lakers don't belong high up on a list like this one. A striking aspect of this feature was noting all the smart people working in the OKC front office with Presti. It is not a one-man shop. Or even a two- or three-man shop. And this is a small market group that doesn't, or at least shouldn't, have the same resources as the Lakers. The purple and gold, however, run with a very lean operation in basketball ops. 

Is it because the Lakers lack vision? Because they do. Because they're too insular? Because they are. Because the people they do have are not inclined in the slightest to expand the operation, especially if it means hiring people who could potentially replace you? Very likely. Because they're too cheap? Whether in this space or others, that's long been a criticism. 

Los Angeles has two crown jewel franchises in the Lakers and the Dodgers. But one thing that sets the Dodgers apart is their willingness to hire every smart person they can find to do stuff around the organization. In the front office, in scouting, in training and beyond. Ownership has an ethic of more-is-more, and the person at the head of it (Andrew Friedman) does not operate in fear of failure, where his replacement has an office down the hall. 

The Lakers can't circumvent the salary cap, but they can spend unlimited amounts of money on human capital. But they don't, and at some point that has to change. 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: No LeBron in Minnesota. 

SEGMENT 2: Who does Redick start? 

SEGMENT 3: A major failure in the Lakers organization. 

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After a couple of days off (including one "get what you need" day) the Lakers got back on the floor Wednesday in El Segundo, and there were some welcome bodies back on the floor. 

Namely, Austin Reaves was back. Not exactly practicing fully, JJ Redick said, but doing a lot of 5-on-5 work, which points to a potential return whether on Friday in Minnesota or Sunday at home against Memphis. But missing from the afternoon's work? LeBron James. He was out for what was described as "personal reasons," with no details on when he'll be back with the team, or if he'd be available for Friday. 

All of this took place on a day where ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported that the Golden State Warriors are kicking the tires again on James, wondering if he'd be interested in moving north, and if the Lakers would then accommodate. To be clear, Windy said there is zero indication James wants out—he did say LeBron very much wants but the combination of his reporting and the timing of LeBron's absence  had people talking. And LeBron knows this. 

While it's interesting to consider how James might be putting leverage on the organization, it's equally interesting to think about alternate explanations for needing a little time. There are obviously the physical reasons. LeBron has been dealing with foot and ankle problems, and looked exhausted for much of the team's recent run of games (though it should be noted, he finished with stronger efforts against Miami and Atlanta). But James has often talked about the mental end of things, and how hard it is to maintain the energy and dedication required to compete at the level he expects (and that the Lakers need). 

So what if this is a mental break, as much as anything? Would that indicate that James is at least inching closer to a conclusion in his career? Where the body might still be holding up (well enough, for now) but the mind can't quite carry the burden as effectively? We'll learn a lot more once James is back with the team and presumably answers some questions. But it's a reminder of the fascinating, and virtually unprecedented, place the Lakers are in vis-a-vis their star forward. 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: Reaves (almost?) back, but LeBron is absent. 

SEGMENT 2: Why was LeBron gone? 

SEGMENT 3: What to do with D'Angelo Russell? 

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December 15 is a huge date in the NBA. That's when a big chunk of the league, including players who signed free agent deals last summer, becomes trade eligible. (85 players, according to ESPN.) 

It's hard to know what the market will look like. Summer, for example, was a lot slower than many free agent periods, thanks to the new rules in the CBA that are far more restrictive. Will that impact trade season? Already names are getting floated out there -- Jimmy Butler reportedly is open to leaving Miami. Basically all the Nets are available (with players like Dorian Finney-Smith and Cam Johnson  being of particular interest to LA). And there will be more. 

That prompts a few big questions: 

1. Are there players out there that would help the Lakers?
2. Are there players out there that would help the Lakers that the Lakers can actually acquire, with relatively limited trade capital.
3. Are the Lakers good enough to make trades worth it?

The third one is particularly significant. On the one hand, the Lakers have Anthony Davis and a still-excellent LeBron James. On the other, they're a flawed team in a stacked conference, and probably need a lot to go right even if they improve themselves in a trade. So what to do? And more importantly, what's the next step if they choose not to be active going forward? Or, perhaps just as likely, if they're sidelined because teams just don't want their stuff, or get better offers? 

To answer those questions and more, we're talking with old friend of this space Anthony Irwin, host of the Lakers Lounge, and columnist for Clutch Points. 

It's a frank conversation about the state of the Lakers, what might be done to improve them, and the precarious nature of things no matter what they choose to do. 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky  (Guest, Anthony Irwin)

SEGMENT 1: Trade season is almost here! 

SEGMENT 2: How good are the Lakers? Are they worth trying to rescue? 

SEGMENT 3: What happens if the Lakers choose not to make moves... or just can't get them done? 

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One of the interesting perks of the new NBA Cup tournament is the impact it has on the schedule. Because the league needs to leave space for  games that are impossible to slate before the seasons starts, there's about a 10-day stretch or so that provides a lot more off-days than is typical in the regular season. 

For the Lakers, it means no games until Friday, then another on Sunday, and nothing until the following Thursday. 

So about two games in 10 days. And more days off for LeBron James, who sat out Sunday's win against Portland. That amount of rest was undoubtedly on the mind of JJ Redick and the training staff (and James himself) when they made the decision to sit him, rather than push through a bothersome foot injury. With the Lakers essentially taking Monday and Tuesday off before resuming practice on Wednesday, James will get four days to rest and recharge. And because he's now missed a game, the whole "play 82" thing is out the window. 

The Lakers need to figure out a way to navigate these stretches of schedule like the one they just finished, with seven games in 11 days. They don't happen often, but they happen enough. Navigating those so James can play as effectively as possible needs to be the priority, even if that means sitting out the occasional game he's otherwise healthy enough to play. But LeBron isn't the only player who can use some time off his feet. Anthony Davis in the most literal sense needs space to let his plantar fasciitis to calm down. Austin Reaves is healing, as is Jaxson Hayes. (And this is before even bothering to mention Christian Wood or Jarred Vanderbilt). 

Of course, health isn't the only thing the Lakers need to regain over this stretch. As JJ Redick noted before the game, and multiple players said after, the Lakers need to get back to their early-season identity on offense, where Anthony Davis was the highest usage rate and the whole operation generally was more egalitarian. During the slump, for a variety of reasons (including some of LeBron's habits built over 22 years) that usage flipped to where James was the dominant figure. The Lakers need to reverse that trend. 

Friday's loss in Atlanta and Sunday's win were decent steps in that direction, but surely the opportunity to get meaningful practice time in and reinforce those habits is something Redick and his staff are excited about. It's likely not a coincidence that their execution and attention to detail are slipping as the season gets older, and teams have less time to practice and fewer bodies to do it with, anyway. 

So can the Lakers regain the best version of themselves? It'll help to get Reaves back, especially. But it's not just about personnel. The Lakers aren't as talented from top to bottom as the better teams in the West, meaning they have to execute at a higher level. 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

SEGMENT 1: LeBron gets some badly needed rest. Will it matter? 

SEGMENT 2: What are we talking about when we're talking LeBron and fatigue?

SEGMENT 3: The Lakers need to make sure Anthony Davis is the focus of the offense, every game. And AD needs to back it up. 

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It took a minute for the Lakers to get going, but once they did, Sunday's game at home against the Portland TrailBlazers looked a lot more like fans expected it would, even with LeBron James (foot) joining Austin Reaves and the rest of the limpy Lakers in street clothes. 

In games like this, it's hard to pull lessons that apply for the long term. There are too many players missing, too many weird combinations. All three of LA's two-way players were in long before garbage time, just to provide one example. 

What you want, though, are some of the secondary guys to step up when called upon. The Lakers got the output you'd expect from Anthony Davis (30 points, 11 rebounds, five blocks), but without two of their top three scorers needed more. Enter D'Angelo Russell (28 points, 14 assists) and Rui Hachimura (23 points, 9-13 shooting). The win doesn't solve LA's problems by any stretch, but it does get them into this weird moment in the schedule (thanks to the NBA Cup) where the Lakers will only play two games in 10 days or so. That gives them time to heal—the hope is that LeBron and Reaves won't have to miss much more time, and Jaxson Hayes could inch closer to a return as well—and jsut as importantly, time to practice. 

This is a thin team. It is a flawed team. It is not a team that can afford to get too far from its best principles, applied in the most efficient way. That requires repetition, and it's probably not a coincidence that as the Lakers have gotten further away from training camp and regular practice time with enough healthy bodies to make practice meaningful, the attention to detail that was so strong early has diminished. 

The Lakers can't fix the results of frustrating games, whether the last second loss to Orlando last month, or Friday's frustration fest in Atlanta. They're back in that big clump of teams simultaneously working to stay out of the play-in... and make sure they don't miss the play-in entirely. There are 12 teams that look to be in play for 10 spots. It's going to be brutal going forward, but at 13-11 things could be worse, especially given how many lopsided losses they've suffered. 

But the Lakers aren't where they need to be, even if you're not putting them on the short list of contenders. (And you shouldn't be.) The next 10 days are critical. 

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Anthony Davis scored 30 points, grabbed 11 boards, and blocked 5 shots as the Los Angeles Lakers snapped their 3-game losing streak, beating the Portland Trail Blazers 107-98. LeBron James missed his first game of the season with a foot injury, but Rui Hachimura scored 23 and D’Angelo Russell added 28 points in his absence.

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