The San Antonio Spurs defeat the Los Angeles Lakers, 143-142, in a thrilling overtime battle.
The San Antonio Spurs fought tooth and nail against the Los Angeles Lakers and finally came up with a win. LeBron James gave Spurs’ fans a run for their money as he scored 32 points while grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out 14 assists.
Unfortunately, however, DeMar DeRozan posted an identical stat line as James along with a win – showcasing what his fans wanted to see from him.
For Los Angeles Lakers‘ fans, however, there are more pressing matters – who should be playing and how much, which lineups work best, and who fills which roles best. One constant that remains in these matters is that they are all concerning the current roster.
After hearing the breaking news of LeBron signing with the Lakers, fans awaited eagerly for the acquisition of either Kawhi Leonard or DeMarcus Cousins as speculations suggested. What followed, however, caught everyone off guard.
First, the front office renounced their rights to breakout star Julius Randle and signed Rajon Rondo – a long-time rival of James. Next, they signed Lance Stephenson – by far LeBron’s most famous opponent. Finally, they capped off their free agency by signing JaVale McGee and Michael Beasley to form one of the most surprising rosters around James.
Throughout the summer, Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka repeatedly assured the media and fans that this team was organized specifically this way for better playmaking and defending.
For us fans, however, it is still difficult to comprehend why it would be best to surround LeBron by his, now former, archenemies.
Now, however, it is time to see if the moves were worth it.
To keep up with the roster and the team’s success, I will post Lakers Report Cards after each game consisting of the following categories:
- Player Grades (five players – two key and three role – with the most minutes from the game)
- Team Grades (for the game)
- Predictions (five players – two key and three role – with the most minutes from the game, team win/loss prediction for the next game)
- WEEKLY BONUS (Highs, Lows, & Surprises)
The topics are pretty self-explanatory, but I would like to point out that the WEEKLY BONUS will be posted after the last game of each week. This bonus will consist of players who were studs and duds, team categories which improved and those which still need improvement, and X-factors or shockers that affected the team throughout the week.
With that, let’s get started.