Lakers After The Season’s First Quarter

With the first quarter of the season in the rearview, we check back in on the Lakers and look at what to expect going forward.

The NBA season is already about 25 percent completed, and the Lakers are probably the surprise team of the league. With a record of 10-12, they even have a chance at making the playoffs, which few people predicted.

What are the main strengths of the team so far?

Coaching– Luke Walton has not only proven his readiness to be an NBA head coach, but he is likely the leading candidate for coach-of-the-year honors. His players have eagerly adopted his concept of teamwork and his share-the-ball mentality.
Depth- Nine players average between 21 and 28 minutes per game. Five players average 13 to 17.5 points per game, and five others between 6 and 8.. Recent injuries to D’Angelo Russell, Nick Young, Julius Randle (for a few games) and now Larry Nance Jr. is putting that depth to a good test. Walton has been forced to dig even deeper into his bench. So far, Jose Calderon and Thomas Robinson have both responded reasonably well.
Resiliency- In nine different games, the Lakers trailed by double figures and came back to take the lead. They didn’t win all 9 times, but they’ve proven that they don’t give up. In the lion’s share of their first 22 games, they’ve held a lead at some point in the fourth quarter. So leaving Staples Center or turning off your TV early is probably not a good idea.

Offense- before the injury bug hit, the Lakers shined offensively. Even though they have since slacked off a bit, they still score over 105 points per game, dropping a few notches to rank 12^th in the league. That’s true even though they don’t have a single player among the top 50 scorers, and are unlikely to have anyone named to the all-star team.
The ‘baby Lakers’- Russell, Randle, Nance, Brandon Ingram, Jordan Clarkson and Tarik Black (all age 25 and younger with less than 3 years of NBA experience) have each proven their worth and made important contributions to the team’s success. (The seventh baby Laker, Ivica Zubac, is playing in the D League, gaining valuable playing time to develop for the future).
The Veterans– much has already been written about the unlikely yet impressive resurgence of Young. Lou Williams, a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, leads the strong second unit while Timofey Mozgov has been a solid inside force and Calderon has been a steadying influence. Luol Deng is a great locker room presence and provides leadership, but his on-court performance has been lackluster at best (although he had by far his best offensive game against Memphis Saturday). If rumors are true that Minnesota coach Tom Thibodeau, who coached Deng in Chicago, might be interested in acquiring him, the Lakers should jump on the opportunity to trade him for a young T-Wolf (wouldn’t Zach LaVine look great in a Lakers uniform?) or a draft pick.

What still needs to be worked on?

Defense- certainly a work in progress. They surrender an average of over 109 PPG, which ranks them 26^th in the league, ahead of only Denver, Portland, Phoenix and Brooklyn. Granted, points allowed can be a misleading stat for a team that pushes the pace and wants to shoot quickly, leading to more possessions (and more points) for both teams. But anyone who has seen the team in action recognizes that their defense needs to be upgraded. In their last two wins, against Atlanta and Chicago, they played their best defense of the season. The challenge is to do so with regularity.
Consistency- this is a problem for most young players. A great shooting game one night is often followed by a poor one the next. But the good news is that none of the baby Lakers has yet reached the limits of his potential. Each can be expected to continue to improve, which bodes well not only for this season but beyond into the future.

What should we expect to see the rest of the season?

None of the various player injuries appear to be serious, so there is reason to hope that they will all return to action and be able to pick up right where they left off. At full strength, the Lakers are capable of beating any NBA on any given night. But at this point in their development, they can’t do so on a night-in, night-out basis.