On January 20, Beijing time, the Lakers lost to the Pacers 104-111 at home, LeBron James played 37 minutes in this campaign, shooting 11 of 22, 3 of 7 from three-point range, cutting 30 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals, but the personal plus-minus was the lowest -20 in the game. Russell Westbrook played 27 minutes, shooting 5-of-17 from the field and 4-of-6 from three-point range, and had just 14 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal.
The Lakers had led the Pacers by up to 15 points in this campaign, but they collapsed in the final quarter, and the five small lineups not only failed to play an advantage on the offensive end (even many times by Horton Tucker in the final moments of the final quarter), but also the defensive end was full of mistakes, not only had a lot of incredible leaks, but also the rebounding scramble fell into the disadvantage. Le Vere scored 22 points in the final quarter to help the Pacers end their eight-game losing streak on the road, and the last time they won on the road had to go back to November 23 last year, when they beat the Bulls on the road. The Pacers currently have a record of only 16 wins and 29 losses to rank 13th in the East.
The Lakers have three tough problems to solve after this game, first of all, they need to weigh the problem of how to use Wei Shao at the critical moment of the game. Although Wei Shao shot 4 three-pointers in this campaign, the overall offense of the Lakers when he was on the court was not very good, and the most important thing was that Wei Shao's defense was a problem. Westbrook was abandoned by the team at a crucial moment in the final quarter, and he was replaced by Munch with 3 minutes and 52 seconds left in the final quarter, and never appeared again. According to a number of Lakers reporters, Westbrook did not accept media interviews after the game, but directly left the stadium.
For the decision not to go to Westbrook at the end of the game, Lakers coach Frank Vogel said after the game that he just wanted to send a lineup that could win. Coach Wo's response was somewhat tough, and it was also widely interpreted by the outside world as his words in the management of the hardcore team. Considering Wei Shao's salary and team status, it is difficult for Vogel to abandon him at the critical moment of the last quarter, as long as Wei Shao is still in the team, the Lakers coaching staff needs to consider how to use Wei Shao, how to use the strengths and avoid the weaknesses.
In addition to Vogel, James and Cameron Anthony were also asked in post-game interviews about Their views on Westbrook's last-minute abandonment. A reporter asked James how he saw Vogel's practice of letting Wei Shao sit on the bench at a critical moment, whether this would bother Wei Shao, James directly asked the reporter whether he paid attention to Wei Shao's career and this season's game, bluntly saying that the reporter should ask himself this question first (will this bother Wei Shao). "I'm going home and watching a movie with my wife, man, I have to go." Old Zhan ended the interview on this ground.
Anthony stood up for Vogel after the game, saying that the outcome of the game depends on the performance of the players, Vogel is not in the game, and when he talked about Westbrook's final moment abandonment, he said that this was just an adjustment by the coaching staff and not for Westbrook. 'I think I know what Westbrook is going through, I've been through this before, and I don't think the coach's putting Westbrook on the bench at key moments is not aimed at him. Anthony said.
Then again, there are two other puzzles that plague the Lakers. Fans who pay attention to this campaign should know that Vogel insisted on using a small lineup in the fourth quarter, but the effect was not good, the offensive end failed to play an advantage, and it could not prevent people and grab rebounds, which made the outside world question why Dwight Howard was not used to protect the basket and protect rebounds. We can understand Vogel's use of a small lineup to open up the situation on the offensive end, but once he encounters the problem of being unable to defend and grab the board, he needs to consider using a big center. Obviously, using a small lineup is the trend in the league today, but Vogel needs to weigh whether he has always insisted on ending with a small lineup.
Secondly, due to injury problems, the Lakers have not yet been able to put together a complete lineup to play, and "thick eyebrows" Anthony Davis and Kendrick Nunn are still recuperating from injuries, which requires the coaching staff to arrange a reasonable lineup rotation. Veteran Trevo Ariza has started in his last two games, but is in average form, with a total of only 12 of 1 and a disappointing defensive performance. Considering Ariza's age and state, it is not known whether putting him on the bench would be better. Although Anthony did not surprise us less, but when his three-point shot was not accurate, the defense would be targeted, and in the final moments of the final quarter, these would require Vogel to adjust and make substitutions.