The Lakers led by 23 points but lost the game, and it was to the Pelicans, a rival in the playoffs. Both Lakers core James and coach Vogel were disappointed. Why are the Lakers so different in the first and second halves? Vogel explained.
"Because James was a bit faltering after his ankle injury, I asked him to play a little more without the ball, which could have caused the team's offense to struggle." Vogel said.
The Lakers scored 69 points in the first half and only 39 points in the second half, knowing that the Lakers scored 38 points in the second quarter, just one point less than the second half. The Lakers offense in the second half was muted. When James' offensive firepower wasn't as ferocious, his teammates didn't share enough of the pressure on him.
However, Vogel's substitution at the crucial moment was also controversial, and he replaced Howard and put Anthony. Anthony didn't play much time, playing only 15 minutes. He got a chance to shoot a three-pointer and didn't shoot.
The Lakers' five-small lineup was again hit by a big center, and Valanciunas scored from the basket. In this game, the Lakers lacked energy in the second half, the physical confrontation lost to the Pelicans, and the offensive end became hesitant because Of James had fewer possession opportunities, and the Lakers' offense became hesitant, more of a singles.
Wei Shao did not stand up and score in the second half, which is also a big impact on the Lakers' offense. In this battle, Reeves did not score a single point, Stanley Johnson did not score a single point, and Anthony only scored 3 points on 1-of-4 shooting. The three of them are the Lakers' worst players in this game.
Although James sprained his ankle, he still played for 42 minutes. The second boss Wei Shao did not have any foul trouble, but only played 32 minutes, 1 minute less than Howard. Vogel did not activate the full energy of Wei Shao.
James was very upset about the game being reversed, saying: It feels like. ”
The Lakers' record slipped to tenth in the West again, and the Spurs behind them were only one win behind. James' ankle injury has become a major concern that could lead to his absence from the game. James admitted that he felt severe pain from the injury but "understood how important this game was for us" and that if this game hadn't been so important " probably wouldn't have continued with an injury. ”
The Lakers have 8 games left, six of which have a win rate of more than 50 percent, and the other two are playing the Pelicans and Thunder. It is no longer safe to rely on the Lakers' current lineup to impact the playoffs, and perhaps the Lakers should expect the thick-browed brother to quickly return to fight the fire.