Every Los Angeles Lakers player earned minutes in their victorious 117-91 win against the Golden State Warriors. Forward LeBron James noted how watching film has been a great help.
“It gives you an opportunity to be a ahead of some plays,” he said. “To be in a position where you can be there before the actual action takes place because you broke down the film, you watched it, it helps out a lot.”
James scored 19 points and forward Kyle Kuzma came off the bench with 11 rebounds. Warriors guard Steph Curry scored 16 points and center James Wiseman made eight rebounds.
The Lakers found their offensive stride right away and sank three-point shots. They were sent to the line twice in the early minutes of the game. Center Marc Gasol blocked shots at the rim, sending the ball to other Lakers players to score. After the first time out, the Warriors found some energy, but went into the second quarter behind by 20 points.
As star guard Curry rested on the sidelines, the Warriors fought futilely to overcome their double-digit deficit. The Lakers used ball movement to score. Offense for the reigning NBA champs slowed down after they scored 60 points.
Curry returned to the hardwood, giving Golden State an offensive boost. He knew how to draw a foul from Lakers players to get him on the charity stripe. On one occasion, Schroder fouled Curry and caused Schroder to get into a confrontation with him.
The Lakers kept their handle on the game for the rest of the first half, shooting at 51.2 percent from the field and landing nine of 20 three-pointers. James hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer to put the Lakers ahead 73-44 at halftime.
“[The Lakers] did a really good job of being physical, I didn’t think we got much penetration,” said Golden State head coach Steve Kerr. “We didn’t get the ball into the paint very well at all and they sort of took us out of everything we wanted to do.”
The Warriors got into foul trouble as center James Wiseman got his fourth foul. Forward Markieff Morris fought to grab offensive rebounds while various Lakers players attacked the paint to score. A three-ball from guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope gave the Lakers a 30-point lead.
The defensive coverage the Lakers implemented in the matchup was similar to the coverage they used against the Portland Trailblazers. The familiar scheme was a benefit to the Lakers, according to Lakers head coach Frank Vogel.
“Some of the movement stuff with Steph (Curry), our coverages are similar to the way we guarded Duncan Robinson in the Finals,” he said. “So there is a familiarity for us with those two playoff opponents that we have.”
Lakers forward Damien Jones entered the game and had no problem scoring. Guard Kent Bazemore hit a three at the third quarter buzzer, but there was little hope for the Warriors who were in a 30-point hole.
Tonight marks Jones’s first game as a Laker, scoring eight points and three rebounds. Forward Markieiff Morris was one of the many players who reached out to him since signing with the Lakers.
“I’m not all the way familiar with the offices yet, so having guys help me get into position, that really helps,” Jones said.
In the final phase, players like Jared Dudley, Kostas Antetokounmpo, and Devontae Cacok got playing time. James only had to play 24 minutes in the matchup and almost every Lakers player scored. Six Lakers players scored in the double digits.
The Phoenix Suns come into town to battle the Lakers on Tuesday at 7:00P.M.
