Jan 23, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach
Byron Scottwatches from the sideline during the second half against the San Antonio Spurs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Lakers have their priorities straight
It should not have taken this long, but I finally feel confident that the Lakers really want a top draft pick. In a game that would mean more if they lost, Byron Scott kept Robert Sacre in the game. Sacre shot 0-6 from the field and scored 2 points in 22 minutes of action. Also, after claiming he felt ready to go, Nick Young was not put into the game at any point. Ed Davis barely saw the court in the first half, and a majority of his minutes were in garbage time.
However, the most obvious tanking technique was that Anthony did not receive one double team. Play after play he saw straight up, one-on-one defense. And the worse thing is, Kelly was the one guarding him. The 6’10” so called “stretch four” was being relied on to stop one of the best scorers in the league by himself. If you don’t have Kawhi Leonard or LeBron James on your team, letting Anthony go one-on-one is not the best idea.
Put all of these variables together and it is clear that the Lakers wanted to lose this game. Like I mentioned earlier, the Knicks are one of three teams in front of the Lakers in the tank rank.
I’m not going to lie. I wished Derrick Rose hit his step back jumper to win the game in the fourth quarter on Thursday night. Every loss counts for the rest of the season and this one could very likely assure Lakers their 2015 lottery pick.