Corey Brewer’s defense against the Phoenix Suns Friday night exemplified that doing the dirty work can make all the difference in the end for the Los Angeles Lakers.
On Friday night the Los Angeles Lakers hung on until the very end to beat the Phoenix Suns 132-130. As a result, the Lakers earned their first win of the new campaign.
When the victory is thought about, rookie Lonzo Ball stole the show by nearly getting a triple-double. Center Brook Lopez picked up a double-double, and sophomore Brandon Ingram was economical in scoring 25 points (a career-high).
Although the aforesaid trio filled up the box score, the real hero of the night was someone else. While this seems difficult to believe, there is no way Los Angeles would have gotten the “W” otherwise.
That someone else is Corey Brewer. Yes, folks, that is not a typo or anything along those lines.
Albeit Brewer is not known for putting up big numbers, he played quite a major role in Friday’s ballgame due to his defense.
Los Angeles Lakers
Upon bearing in mind that the Suns still sunk 130 points, words like “defense” seem out of place. To some degree there is no denying that statement.
However, it is safe to say that Phoenix would have had around 140 if Corey did not show up. The 31-year-old veteran demonstrated grit throughout the second half when guarding tremendously gifted youngster Devin Booker.
In the first 24 minutes, the Lakers could not find a whole lot of answers with respect to Booker. The 20-year-old shooting guard splashed 17 points through the net during that span. Consequently, it appeared as though Booker was on pace to score 30 to 40 easily.
Despite the fact that Booker was a man on a mission, Brewer caused Booker’s mission to fail for the most part in the latter 24 minutes. The veteran simply outdueled the Suns’ star, largely by forcing Devin into some tough, inefficient shot attempts. He made it challenging for Booker to book much of anything offensively.
By virtue of dragging Booker out of his comfort zone, the Lakers’ confidence escalated collectively. Even though it did not last, L.A. led by double-digits for short stretches in each of the last two quarters.
Brewer’s tenacious hustle did not go unnoticed by head coach Luke Walton. Following the win, Walton praised Brewer via an article by Corey Hansford of Lakers Nation.
"Luke Walton said Corey Brewer really set the tone tonight, “energized the entire group.”— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) October 21, 2017"
Provided that little energy was there against the Clippers in the opener, this is what the ball club needed. The team will continue to need it moving forward as well.
The team remains young all in all, so creating those good habits all-around will take time. With that being said, it is great to see that Brewer is setting an example early on for his younger teammates.
Ingram in particular appears to have been impressed by what Brewer did on the floor. According to what Blasting News writer Dz. Mesic recently unveiled, BI echoed Walton’s sentiments.
"“Brewer did a great job on Dev Booker tonight – on the offensive end and defensive end,” Ingram said, as revealed on Spectrum SportsNet. “He just brings that veteran leadership. He has won a championship in this league. So, everybody wants to follow him on the floor.”"
Hard-nosed defense is not the most enjoyable, flamboyant aspect of basketball—it is not supposed to be. It is why Ball and Ingram have earned the headlines over the last set of hours. This is not meant to belittle their impact, but tangible stats tend to be focused on a lot by the media.
Be that as it may, practically gluing the self to the other team’s best player is one of the best steps a team can take to raise their chances of winning. Facets such as points do not always tell the entire story. Thankfully, last night the glue worked wonders for Los Angeles in the form of Corey Brewer.
Without Brewer, the pages of Book(er) would have surely unfolded and led to a mess. Booker was on fire in the first half, so someone had to douse the flames.
Thus, the words Corey obtained from his coach and fellow teammate are deserved. He was not afraid to find that extra gear and do the dirty work against a rising star.
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Versus the Pelicans, Brewer may not get as many minutes from Luke in light of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s return. Caldwell-Pope, though, is also widely deemed a defensive magnet of sorts. Given that truth, the tandem of KCP/Brewer could prove to be deadly for perimeter players as the season progresses.