Los Angeles Lakers: 3 reasons the defense has been pathetic lately
By Robert Marvi
2. Not defending the paint or stopping penetration
The Lakers’ defense in the paint has gotten lax as of late. On February 10 against the Philadelphia 76ers, they gave up a ridiculous 70 points in the paint, and the clip below is an example why.
On this play, Joel Embiid forces a turnover and the Lakers are caught napping on transition D as the Cameroon native takes it coast-to-coast for an uncontested slam dunk.
I know Embiid, barring another major injury, will be the NBA’s next all-time great center, but there’s no reason to let him get that type of easy bucket. Throughout that game, Embiid continually waltzed his way to the hoop for rim-rattling dunks. Not acceptable.