3 Lessons in a weekend of Los Angeles Lakers back to back games
By Ronald Agers
Zion Williamson and Ja’ Morant went nuts against the Los Angeles Lakers. Both have earned the respect of LeBron James.
The Lakers just had no answer for rookie sensation Ja Morant, who finished with 27 points and 14 assists, or Jonas Valanciunas, who bullied L.A. on the glass to end the night with 22 points and 20 rebounds. Bottom line, these two players, along with Dillon Brooks firing from everywhere, is the reason the Lakers lost.
But we need to talk about this Morant dude. We thought the man was crazy when he tried to end Kevin Love earlier this season. After this game, we know Ja’ just is not scared. He tried AD too.
https://twitter.com/ESPNNBA/status/1234116177741238276
Ja’ Morant is going to be special in this league. When he went back and forth with Stephen Curry about Andre Iguodala not reporting to play with the team, he gained some serious respect throughout the NBA. The guy competes. After the game, he did an interview that shows that NBA players do pay attention to articles and Tweets alike.
"“I’m thankful for this guy who tweeted and said I don’t have that fire in my eye no more. That game right there was for him.”"
The NBA will try to push the narrative that Zion Williamson will have a chance to get the NBA Rookie of the Year award based on his play. Lake Show Life has a message to all parties involved. Please stop. The fact that the trophy is not sitting in his living room at this point is crime within itself.
Speaking of Zion, let’s discuss him real quick.
People are already starting to pit LeBron James against Zion Williamson already based on their chat after the game. Skip Bayless anyone?
"Funny, LeBron seems off-balance because Zion won’t suck up to him the way other young stars do. I love Zion for keeping a competitive arm’s length from LeBron. So LeBron approached Zion after the game and whispered advice to him. HE DIDN’T ASK FOR IT, KING. GIVE IT UP."
Now that why have bad takes out-of-the-way, let’s deal with reality. Zion Williamson was ridiculous.
He scored 35 points on 12-of-16 shooting (One of his misses was a dunk!) and 11-of-13 from the free-throw line. This performance is off of athletic ability and instincts at this point. Think about how good this dude will be when he tightens his dribble (It needs work!) and learns how to defend. LeBron James is the face of the NBA now, but look at the heir apparent when he retires.
Well, LeBron James hasn’t retired yet. He played this last weekend. Lake Show Life talks about him next.