The regular season continues, unlike the Clippers, Warriors and other teams of consecutive victories, the Los Angeles Lakers, which are highly optimistic in the offseason, have been difficult to calmly face this season, and the poor record is one of the aspects, but obviously, the successive counterattacks by weak brigades are the beginning of their confusion.
We don't know the Lakers' "locker room atmosphere" or the "real relationship" of the players, but judging from the performance of the Lakers players on the court, it is clear that they are not so harmonious.
There is a saying that is right, "victory can cover everything", but there is a more classic sentence, "failure can destroy everything", and the Lakers are already on the verge of destruction.
The previous "conflict" between Anthony Davis and Dwight Howard has exposed some basic situations of the Lakers, although Anthony Davis is the core of the Lakers, he is also one of the most "emotional" players in the Lakers, and it can be seen that his frustration has begun to affect the court.
The Lakers' 126-123 overtime win over the Hornets at home has exposed the relationship between the players, and even said that some discontent between the players may have been created.
The Lakers played well in the first three quarters, and although the third quarter was only supported by Westbrook and Anthony for a while, they soon found their offensive rhythm again.
In fact, the last half of the quarter can lead the double-digit score, it seems that the game is actually very stable.
Let's first look at how Westbrook personally thinks the game went from an 11-point lead in the final quarter to a pivotal round.
In an interview, Westbrook said the team's mistakes allowed the Hornets to bite back into the score, and he praised his teammates for staying calm and regaining momentum to win.
Objectively speaking, the wording of this team-wide mistake is not strict, in fact, it is Wei Shao's frequent low-level mistakes on the field that cause the team to struggle, not only passing, but even some dribbling errors.
These bizarre mistakes allowed the Hornets to quickly chase points, and the Lakers could only stare dryly, and in overtime, Anthony Davis had "can't stand it", starting in the backcourt, taking the initiative to ask for the ball from Westbrook, and advancing to the front court with the ball, this move may not be without the meaning of blaming Westbrook.
After the game, outside public opinion is also discussing this picture, in the face of the "ball" of the legitimate point guard Westbrook, Anthony Davis does not look at it, and the "dissatisfaction" has even been materialized, which has almost become the "famous scene" of the league.
Not only that, Anthony Davis also "punched" Westbrook with practical actions.
After Anthony hit a three-pointer in his hot hand, Davis quickly blocked Anthony at 45 degrees on the left side of the next round, taking the initiative to make a wall, while Westbrook, who controlled the ball, directly ignored Anthony, who had a chance.
If Westbrook can hit it, it turns out that the probability of losing is even greater.
Therefore, in overtime, Anthony Davis ignored Westbrook, who made frequent mistakes in the final quarter, dribbled the ball to the front court, and also gave Anthony a chance to "empty three-pointers", Anthony fell with a knife and directly scored the key three points.
Obviously, even if he has not touched the ball for nearly 15 minutes, the "melon" feels hot, and Anthony Davis is undoubtedly directly telling Westbrook that the attack is actually so simple.
Of course, in the post-match interview, Westbrook also said well when praising the outstanding "melon" Anthony, saying that he was a Hall of Famer and needed to find him on the court.
However, judging from the performance on the court, Westbrook never wanted to find Anthony on the offensive end, whether it was the flank or the bottom corner, as long as Westbrook had the opportunity to pass the other side of Anthony, the hot Anthony had not touched the ball for half a quarter.
Wei Shao's behavior on the field is clearly "contrary to what he said in the interview."
Overall, after the Lakers experienced the blow of "losing streak + being reversed by weak brigades + difficult wins", the atmosphere within the team will not be very harmonious, especially some of the moves that Anthony Davis has made on the court fully show his attitude.
In this game, Westbrook shot 5-of-15, with 17 points, 12 rebounds, 14 assists and 3 steals, perhaps, in addition to the inefficiency, Westbrook's data is very good, but obviously, the Lakers need victory rather than data.
Westbrook's problem is very obvious, he lacks shooting, poor defense, of course, the Lakers are in the league's top four level on the offensive end, do not worry too much, so the defensive end of The "send" points are fatal, in fact, he should partner with those players who can give him "wipe their butts" on the defensive end.
For example, he needs a front or second position with excellent defensive ability to frequently change defenses or supplement defenses for him, although Bazmore can temporarily replace the third position, but obviously, his height allows him to barely maintain, once the ball begins to rotate, it is difficult for him to fully exert his defensive ability in the face of tall players.
Reeves is another choice made by Vogel, but from the perspective of the game, Reeves's offensive level is remarkable, the attitude on the field is very serious, but his defensive talent is really not strong enough, and the lack of height and size makes it difficult for him to become an elite-level defensive player.
From that point of view, the Lakers should miss Caruso.
In fact, if they want to maintain the intensity of the game, they need a defender like Caruso or a front line with excellent defensive ability, reeves is a good candidate on the offensive end, but Reeves on the defensive end can't be as good as Caruso.
Through recent games, after seeing Westbrook's performance and the team's frequent appearance of the "three guards" lineup, many people began to miss the guard Caruso who was once "hard-working" and rarely made mistakes, objectively speaking, if he is still in the Lakers, he can indeed play a big role.
From the perspective of partnering with Westbrook alone, Caruso is a good candidate, can shoot three points, can give Westbrook a small defense on the defensive end, does not occupy the ball, is physically strong, etc., which can be described as the Lakers' current shortage of player types.
Of course, many fans and even league staff don't understand why the Lakers wanted to let go of the powerful role player Caruso, but it is clear that they have paid the price for it.
Although the Lakers' guard player reserves are extremely high, considering that there are many people who are reimbursed for injuries, the Lakers can only use the players in the more intense games, such as Westbrook, Rondo, Munch, Bradley and a few others, such as Ellington and other players can only appear as "strange soldiers".
Because of LeBron James's truce with Ariza, the Lakers had to draw candidates on the defensive line to deal with the front, and Reeves and Bazemore became frequent candidates for the front.
If the Lakers left Caruso, with his size and defensive strength, they obviously don't have to worry about the front position, why sacrifice the "three-guard" formation many times?
In fact, Caruso has already verified in the interview that the Lakers really did not leave his thoughts, you know, they gave the young Tucker a contract with an annual salary of 10 million, while Caruso did not even get a promise of 8-9 million, in contrast, the Attitude of the Lakers is clear at a glance.
Currently, Caruso, who has played well with the Bulls, talked about the details of the offseason selection team during a guest podcast, in which he highlighted the negotiations with the Lakers.
"A lot of teams think I can't play in the NBA for two years, so I need financial security. The agent told me that the Bulls were interested in me, and I asked the Lakers if they could offer me something like the Bulls, and they said no, and I lowered some of the requirements, and they said no. ”
Obviously, after the Lakers provided a contract offer of less than 2 years and $15 million, the frequent blockages of the new season have taught them a lesson, and the current Lakers need a defensive player like Caruso, and perhaps, they can only wait for Ariza's comeback.
In any case, the Lakers need to hold on to the record, and wait until James and Ariza return before the game can be played more easily.