The Los Angeles Lakers will still be short-handed on Friday against the Utah Jazz, as Kyle Kuzma will miss his second straight game.
After a tough Opening Night loss to the Utah Jazz, the Los Angeles Lakers will be hoping to bounce back on Friday night in their Home Opener.
The Lakers certainly didn’t play bad against the Clippers, but there were certainly some things that needed to be worked on. One of the glaring issues for the Lakers was the lack of scoring punch off the bench.
While the Clippers have one of the best scorers coming off the bench in the NBA in Lou Williams, the Lakers bench was outscored 60-19. This is a wide margin and one of the reasons why the Lakers were unable to defeat the Clippers.
The loss to the Clippers certainly indicated that the Lakers need some scoring pop off the bench. As many have expected, Kyle Kuzma is going to be that guy for the team. However, he was out against the Clippers and will be out against the Utah Jazz as well.
Here’s what Frank Vogel said via Harrison Faigen of Silver Screen and Roll.
"“I don’t know. We’re taking it day-to-day with him and seeing how he responds to the increased activity each day, but he’s not going to play Friday,” Vogel said."
Missing Kuzma certainly hurt the Lakers, and they will need him back soon. As of now, there really isn’t a great option off the bench to replace the potential scoring that he can bring to the table.
One of the logical scoring options off the bench is Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, however, he was held without a point in 27 minutes of play. Frank Vogel did a good job of staggering the minutes of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but against teams like the Clippers, the Lakers clearly need a guy like Kuzma off the bench.
On Friday, the Lakers will have a challenging test against the Utah Jazz. The Jazz are an improved team from this offseason and one of the best defensive teams in the league. Without Kuzma off the bench, the Lakers will need someone to step up.