Today the Lakers are at home to face the Jazz. Let them beat the Jazz 101:95 and stop their losing streak. James had 25 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in the game. Westbrook had 15 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Johnson, who came off the bench today, had 15 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists, becoming the hero of today's Lakers' ability to win.
Stanley Johnson scored 10 points in the final quarter to help the Lakers successfully turn the score back and take a larger lead. It's clear that the Lineup the Lakers used in the fourth quarter saved their decline on the court to some extent. Today Vogel had a major tweak, which was to decisively reduce Westbrook's playing time. Today, Wei Shao only played 28 minutes, and it should be known that Wei Shao has averaged more than 35 minutes per game this season. In this game, Vogel deliberately reduced Westbrook's playing time, especially in the crucial fourth quarter.
This game also gave birth to the Lakers' strongest five small lineups. And this set of five small lineups can beat the opponent by 18 points when on the court. The five are James, Stanley Johnson, Tucker, Munch, and Reeves. We can clearly feel the mobility of this lineup and their defense is very good. First of all, Johnson and Reeves have a very good sense of defensive smell, while Tucker is more mobile and can make empty cuts, and Munch has a very good outside shooting ability. They performed very well on both ends of the offensive and defensive ends under James' leadership. So in the future, the Lakers should continue to use this lineup. Statistically speaking, James and his starting partner are far less efficient than with these four people.
Many fans bluntly said that Vogel finally got the hang of this game. He reduced Wei Shao's playing time in key moments and played a role to some extent. Objectively speaking, although Wei Shao had a very explosive dunk today, his overall shooting percentage was not outstanding, and the shooting was still very bad. So in the final moment, if he is on the field, the opponent can decisively choose to recycle, and on the defensive end, Wei Shao is also easy to be targeted. Today's Vogel finally showed some courage and dared to reduce Wei Shao's playing time.
I don't know if Vogel will continue to continue today's strategy in the future and continue to reduce Westbrook's playing time. Fans believe that Westbrook's playing time should be maintained at 25 to 30 minutes. Only this is the most beneficial for the Lakers, and it is also the most beneficial for Westbrook personally, because he can personally get a longer rest time and also help improve his efficiency on the court.