The Lakers of the 2021-22 season are like a giant ship, decaying for a long time, although they have not collapsed, but they are in danger and cannot withstand the beating of the terrifying waves.
On February 17, Beijing time, the Lakers did not face the test of the terrifying waves, but directly hit the reef - "Thick Eyebrow Brother" Davis was injured again, this time he injured his right ankle. Davis stepped on Gobert's foot when he landed, causing a severe sprain to his right ankle.
This is the scene that the Lakers are most worried about, and Davis' injury may directly take away the Lakers' last hope of the season. At present, Davis has only undergone a preliminary X-ray examination, and the result is negative, which is already a great luck in misfortune. As for how long Davis was absent, it would have to wait until the results of the MRI were released.
Davis's injury is undoubtedly a heavy blow to the Lakers, and various American reporters on social media have been impatiently discussing whether the Lakers should give up this game, or even this season. But the Lakers gave their answer with a 14-point reversal - absolutely not to give up one city and one pool.
In the whole game, LeBron James fought for 40 minutes to score 33 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and in the final quarter, he scored 15 points to help the team play a 35-22 Jedi counterattack, and the Lakers finally narrowly defeated the Jazz 106-101, stopping a three-game losing streak.
Yes, Davis's injury has caused the Lakers' offensive and defensive strength to decline, the Lakers have a death schedule in front of them, and then the Blazers catch up, and the Lakers are even in danger of a play-off place. But judging by the Lakers' performance, James and his teammates are holding their breath. Even if management doesn't make any reinforcements before the deal deadline, at least the Lakers players still have no intention of giving up this season, even if they are likely to play the playoffs, even if they can only play the playoffs as seventh or even eighth in the West.
Counting today's game against the Jazz, Davis has played just 37 games this season. Davis has been criticized for not performing as expected, but in fact, his output of 23.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.3 blocks per game is much stronger than last season, and his overall shooting rate of 53.4% is also higher than the championship season. For the Lakers, Davis has always been an indispensable presence. In the 21 games that Davis missed, the Lakers had a record of only 10 wins and 11 losses, with a winning percentage of less than 50%.
Since Davis returned from a knee injury, he's taken his performance to another notch, shooting 57.6 percent from the field and averaging 3.2 blocks per game. On the offensive end, Davis is the Lakers' most reliable endpoint, and his tacit understanding with the defender has recently improved, and his unsolved shot has also been found. Defensively, Davis is the core of supporting the Lakers to take more unlimited changes, and his protection of rebounds and baskets is the key to the Lakers' recent defensive improvement.
In a game with the Jazz, Davis's performance before the injury was nearly perfect, which was the key to the Lakers' ability to draw with the Jazz, and he only used 9 shots to score 17 points plus 2 blocks, and even hit a three-pointer. Davis proved that when he's in good shape, the Lakers aren't afraid of any strong team.
But at this juncture, Davis was injured. If Davis needs a long-term suspension, should the Lakers give up this season? It's too early to give up. If you take the prospect of rushing to the crown, the Lakers really have no need to insist. But as an athlete, giving up without winning the championship is really no sportsman spirit, which is also intolerable to competitive players such as James and Russell Westbrook.
During the Davis truce, the Lakers had a way to deal with it. Previously, when Davis injured his knee, coach Frank Vogel increased james' time playing center, pushing him more to the fifth position to fill the lack of firepower on the offensive end, and the Lakers are already experienced in this regard. Although the Lakers' defense collapsed, at least the offensive end held up the situation and played some good performances. Today's game with the Jazz, James appeared in the fifth position in the fourth quarter, Rudy Gobert could not do anything about him, and his small-ball center played Gobert's traditional tall center advantage is still obvious.
Don't forget, even in the game at Davis, the Lakers' lineup is not neat. Recently, the Lakers have missed Cameron Anthony, and today there is no Avery Bradley, and Kendrick Nunn has not played. Soon Anthony and Bradley will be back, and Nunn expects to make a comeback in late March. If these three people can play, the Lakers can have a few more options on both ends of the attack and defense, and their small ball play style of play with James as the center can be sharper.
Next, the Lakers are also planning to pick up leaks in the buyout market, and their number one target is Golan Dragic. In addition, potential players such as Gary Harris who may be bought out are also on the Lakers' radar. It is unrealistic to expect signing out players to turn the tide, but the Lakers have every opportunity to introduce a power faction to enhance depth and increase combat effectiveness by a small margin. Now the Lakers, any slight improvement can increase their probability of entering the playoffs.
From the perspective of the draft, the Lakers also have no motivation to lie flat and mess. Other teams in the lottery gave up this season to play a high draft pick, but the Lakers' 2022 first-round pick is not in their hands, even if the Lakers get the draft pick, they do not belong to them.
In the Davis trade case, the Lakers sent the first round of signing for 2022 to the Pelicans. Later, the Pelicans sent the first-round pick to the Grizzlies when trading with the Grizzlies for Valanciunas.
According to the protection conditions of this draft pick, if the pick is 1-10, the draft pick belongs to the Pelicans. With the 11-30 pick, the draft pick goes to the Grizzlies. Now the Pelicans and Grizzlies are waiting to see the Lakers' post-All-Star game, and if the Lakers give up this season, the Pelicans may be happy to blossom. And if the Lakers continue to insist on finally fighting the playoffs, then the Grizzlies are undoubtedly the biggest winner.
The bustle is all other people's, and has nothing to do with the Lakers. The Lakers certainly don't want to cheapen their competitors in the West in vain, and it is reasonable for the Lakers to go up as far as possible to reduce the draft pick.
From the perspective of cultivating young people, the Lakers also have no motivation to swing badly, which is the path that those lottery teams with more young players will choose. The Lakers are the oldest team in the league on average, and the veterans who are older make up more than half of the team. Now this Lakers lineup, only Taryn Horton Tucker and Austin Reeves have cultivation value.
The Lakers have a way to get through the difficulties during Davis' absence, and the second has no power to swing, and then no matter what the results of Davis's MRI examination, the Lakers will firmly choose to stick to it. Now James and the Lakers are holding their breath, no matter what the situation is, James will never admit his fate, and no matter how slim the chance, he will try it. Westbrook is eager to get rid of the "cancer" label, and young players such as Reeves, Tucker Jr. and Munch have their own goals.
Perhaps, this is destined to be a season that disappoints James and the Lakers, and Davis's unfortunate injury has made the Lakers' prospects even more bleak. However, only by constantly accepting disappointment can we continue to regroup. Fortunately, the Lakers do not lack the courage to accept disappointment and then regroup.