The Lakers gave the Staples Center a sample of the Summer League
Yes it is true Lakers fans, the Los Angles Lakers went on a huge run in the second half with Alex Caruso who played in his 8th game all season long. Johnathan Williams who is playing on a two-way contract, Josh Hart, who won the Summer league MVP and Moe Wagner. Sample a little LeBron James in the mix and the Lakers made things interesting Let’s give them some shine.
Alex Caruso…
Alex Caruso played his best game of the season scoring 15 points, grabbing 6 rebounds and dished out 3 assists in 29 minutes. He actually did something that Rajon Rondo did not do in this game.
He competed, tried to stop his man and did not embarrass himself or the franchise. Look for him to be playing much more over the next few games for two reasons.
One. because the Lakers are done unless the Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs all go out of business and the these franchises fold. Two, Rajon Rondo needs to be suspended. I get LeBron James did the same thing in the Indiana game but, he’s not the franchise player and if Luke Walton and Magic Johnson lets this one slide, this saga of a season will become a real bad reality show quickly.
Johnathan Williams…
In 15 minutes, Williams banged against the Nuggets front line and was better than expected. Williams scored 8 points and grabbed a couple of rebounds. He needs to stop fouling as much but you know, he was playing against one of the best centers of the NBA in Nikola Jokic and a seasoned veteran in Paul Millsap. To put this in perspective, he has contributed more in 15 minutes than Mike Muscala who the Lakers traded Ivica Zubac for.
Moe Wagner…
Wagner brought physicality that caught the Nuggets big men off guard and frustrated them for the Lakers to make their run. When was the last time anyone actually witnessed a technical foul from Paul Millsap, one of the more even keeled players in the NBA?
Wagner scored 11 points, corralled 3 rebounds and dished out 2 assists. He even hit two 3 point shots in the game. Wagner provided energy that actually resonated not only through his teammates on the floor, but in the crowd.
Get used to these guys, you are going to see a lot of them for the rest of the season, trust me.