Los Angeles Lakers missed Avery Bradley vs. New Orleans Pelicans
The Los Angeles Lakers defense has really missed Avery Bradley, and that was on full display during the game Wednesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Los Angeles Lakers and New Orleans Pelicans played a thrilling game on Wednesday night. Los Angeles started slowly, as they trailed by 10 at halftime and by just as many going into the fourth quarter. Despite that, they pulled out a 114-110 victory in what was a very emotional game.
All of the headlines will talk about how dominant Anthony Davis was, and rightfully so. Davis scored 41 points in his return to New Orleans, the most points ever scored by a player in his return.
He carried the team through the first half when the Lakers slept walked on defense and helped set the tone in the fourth quarter when they held New Orleans to only 21 points. AD even overcame another injury scare, as he looked to have injured his elbow at the end of the third quarter in a collision with Josh Hart.
While Davis deserves all of the credit in the world for helping carry the Lakers to a win, there is an underlying storyline to this game; the Lakers really miss Avery Bradley.
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This has been a building story since Bradley had to be removed from the lineup for a hairline fracture. While Bradley didn’t stuff the stat sheet, his role on the team was an important one as he would usually defend the opponent’s best backcourt player. Without him, the Lakers’ defense has slipped.
While the Lakers haven’t lost a game since Bradley was forced to the sidelines, opponents have begun scoring the ball at a higher clip. When you have Davis and LeBron James, it is easy to turn the flip on when needed and come out victorious. However, that isn’t a strategy that will work against the upper echelon teams in the league.
Take the game against the Pelicans. Jrue Holiday was going off in the first half, scoring 25 points to essentially match the 27 that Davis scored. Rajon Rondo, who has been receiving more minutes in Bradley’s absence, was not getting the job done.
The Lakers didn’t slow Holiday down until the fourth quarter when Alex Caruso drew the assignment and excelled. Unfortunately for Frank Vogel and the Lakers, Caruso cannot play all 48 minutes in a game.
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The Lakers have to hope that Bradley can return to the lineup sooner than later. They need him back, as their defense has suffered as a result. Getting Bradley back into the lineup would also give the Lakers their full allotment of players for basically the first time all season.