The Lakers are in trouble
After the thick eyebrow injury, in The nunn can not come back, in the continuous isolation of players, the Lakers had no choice but to sign Thomas Jr. with a 10-day short contract.
In fact, this signing was generally not optimistic about the fans at that time, first of all, the Lakers actually did not lack point guards, and the Lakers' defense this season is still bad enough, can Thomas Jr., who has been away from the NBA for a long time, really become the savior of the Lakers?
The answer is clear, Thomas Jr. is not a savior, and he can't be the savior of the team. In the two games since joining the Lakers, Thomas Jr. scored 19 and 13 points respectively, and there is still a certain threat on the offensive end. But the team lost the final game, of course, the main reason for the Lakers' loss is not because of Thomas Jr., he can't decide the lifeblood of the team.
But at least Thomas Jr. used his performance on the offensive end to win a certain possibility of getting a formal contract. But in the next two games, Thomas Jr. disappointed the Lakers. In the last game against the Suns, Thomas Jr. scored 11 of 11 in the game, and today he scored 3 points on 1 of 5, with plus-minus of -20 on the bench.
Once Thomas Jr. can't pose a threat on the offensive end, his problems on the defensive end are exposed. His success in his previous peak season stemmed from the team's defensive system, which created space for Thomas Jr. to display his offensive talents. And now the Lakers can't make up for his vacancy, and they can't lay out more tactics for him. Thomas Jr.'s height limits him, and opponents can constantly rely on this to score points.
It is strange to say that after Thomas Jr. played the best performance of his career and was abandoned, he came to James's team. Around Old Zhan, the two may indeed be a little incompatible. Both need a certain amount of ball, but compared to James, Thomas Jr. is obviously less capable.
If it weren't for the Lakers' real shortage of manpower, perhaps he would have completely faded out of the league. In fact, it is clear that Thomas Jr. wants to use this opportunity to prove himself and prove that he can still play in the NBA, but the reality is cruel, and he completely ruined his future with two consecutive bad performances.
It is believed that after the expiration of the 10-day short contract, he will soon leave the Lakers again and leave this alliance. The Lakers themselves have a lot of problems, which are not solved by relying on one person. The team itself is chaotic, and Thomas Jr.'s arrival will only amplify the team's problems.
Thinking about it, who can solve these problems for the Lakers now? It is true that there is no more suitable candidate, if the team's failure at the beginning of the season is due to the problem of lineup run-in, but now that the season has been carried out by one-third, the time left for the Lakers is really not much, if the current momentum continues, they will not achieve a good ranking in the West.
If the Lakers eventually enter the playoffs in the playoffs, they will face the Warriors or the Suns in the first round, then the lakers' first-round exit possibilities will increase greatly. So now the Lakers first have to solve the morale problem, not how big a flaw in the lineup. Thomas Jr. is destined to be a tragic figure, and his career resume is inspiring enough that he doesn't need to prove anything in this league. Brother, please accept the reality, this place may not belong to you anymore.