Lake Show Life
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Los Angeles Lakers receive their rings and a loss to the Clippers!

By Ronald Agers

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 22: Paul George #13 of the LA Clippers passes around Dennis Schroder #17 of the Los Angeles Lakers during the season opening game at Staples Center on December 22, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 22: Paul George #13 of the LA Clippers passes around Dennis Schroder #17 of the Los Angeles Lakers during the season opening game at Staples Center on December 22, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Lakers start the season 0-1 for the second straight season.

The Los Angeles Lakers opened the NBA season getting their championship rings and matchup against their cross-hall arrivals the Clippers. After the Lakers were still enjoying the nostalgia and falling behind, they turned the energy up and made it close at halftime. In the end, Paul George went crazy in the second half in an opening night loss.

The Los Angeles Lakers now have a huge championship ring to add to the trophies on opening night. But for the second straight year, the Los Angeles Clippers celebrate as the opening night championships winning 116-109. The bottom line is, the Lakers couldn’t stop the Clippers superstar duo when they needed to.

Paul George smoked the Lakers for 33 points (13/18 shooting, 5/8 from behind the arc!) with 6 rebounds and 3 assists. Let’s just see if this happens in May and can be done four times in 10 days. Kawhi Leonard put up a stat line of  22 points. 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.

The Good:

Watching video presentations of the players’ families introducing them and congratulating them on their accomplishments. They were all nice, but what stands out is LeBron’s video including the students from his “I Promise” School.

https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1341579018060124161

Jeanie Buss thanking the players that moved on for their accomplishments. JaVale McGee (Traded to Cleveland), Rajon Rondo (Signed with Atlanta), Dwight Howard (Signed with Philadelphia), Danny Green (Traded to Oklahoma City for Dennis Schroder, now in Philadelphia) Troy Daniels (Traded to Denver last year), Dion Waiters (Free Agent), JR Smith (Free Agent) and DeMarcus Cousins (Signed with Houston) for their contributions to the title.

The fact that Troy Daniels and especially Boogie Cousins got acknowledged and got rings shows the loyalty and the class of this organization. Sports teams use the cliché “We are a family” all the time. The Los Angeles Lakers mean it and more importantly show it.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hasn’t lost a step since the NBA Finals. His 9 points in the second quarter were the major catalyst of the Lakers’ run in the second quarter. It’s is so nice to see KCP play so well especially after starting last season with 1 point and no confidence.

Montrezl Harrell is going to be that dude for the Los Angeles Lakers. His energy wore on the Clippers as the night went on.

The Bad:

Lakers Nation was not there to celebrate ring night. Period. They deserve the opportunity to celebrate after six years of supporting their team. Before last year, they were tied with the New York Knicks with the worst percentage in the NBA. But the team will wait for the fans to return to show the championship banners.

Okay, it was cool when the bad starts happened against the Phoenix Suns in the preseason.

  • The Lakers spotted the Suns a 20-7 lead in the third preseason game. They came back to win.
  • They spotted them a 22-7 lead in the final preseason game. They came back to win.

Against the Clippers, the Lake Show fell behind 39-19 after the first quarter and the deficit was as high as 22 points. Even though the Lakers hit the alarm clock and cut the lead to two by halftime, this can’t be the norm for the entire season. This has to be cleaned up.

Get used to the fact that Marc Gasol will struggle mightily against athletic big men. Foul trouble, Serge Ibaka serving up 15 points, and looking totally out of place will have Frank Vogel up at nights this season figuring out matchups favorable for Gasol.

Charles Barkley actually predicting the Portland Trail Blazers making it to the NBA Finals out of the Western Conference. Love the man, but please stop.

The Story:

This shouldn’t be a real shocker. Most championship teams lose on ring night. Bottom line, the Los Angeles Lakers started the quickest turnaround in American sports history.

Frank Vogel and the coaching staff know that the team has to get their legs back and so does Lake Show Life. Plus, didn’t the Clippers win on opening night last year? Well, who ended up with the hardware?

https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1341589513693499392

Next. 40 greatest Lakers of all-time. dark

Lake Show Life’s more in-depth breakdowns will come in Lake Show Life Lessons tomorrow. Keep it locked for the only Los Angeles Lakers post-game report with highlights and in-depth analysis.

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