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Los Angeles Lakers: 4 lessons from the win over the Chicago Bulls

By Ronald Agers

Jan 8, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) moves to the basket against Chicago Bulls forward Patrick Williams (9) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 8, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) moves to the basket against Chicago Bulls forward Patrick Williams (9) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
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Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

Frank Vogel coached a very good defensive game for the Los Angeles Lakers!

The good thing about Frank Vogel is that he will make changes he feels necessary. This game was a perfect example. It was assumed with Anthony Davis with an injury, Kyle Kuzma would be in the starting lineup. Instead, he went with a bigger lineup with Markieff Morris and Wesley Matthews.

The Lakers really struggled with slip screens and it led to over 50 points for Chicago in the paint.

Frank Vogel’s adjustments in the game kept it from being a factor in back to back losses. In the beginning, it looked like it was going to be more of the same listless defense as Zach LaVine scored with ease.

When the Alex Caruso matchup did not work, Vogel immediately made changes. But the Lakers’ defensive struggles did not end with LaVine. It seemed his teammate Coby White wanted to get in on the fun in the second quarter. He scored Chicago’s first 10 points in the second frame. Who was he picking on? Alex Caruso.

https://twitter.com/NBATV/status/1347754199111503874

When it looked like these two players were on to major scoring nights, the Lakers started rushing their double teams on those two players to get the ball out of their hands and break their rhythm.

Even though the pick-and-roll defense continues to be a mess. The small adjustments did help the Lakers get the win. The adjustments did not stop LaVine, but it shut down White.

The Lakers played a lot harder than they did in the last game which is okay. The big improvement was the contributions from the starting lineup not named LeBron James. The Lakers’ superstars showed up against the Spurs, the rest of the starters didn’t. This win over the Bulls was a complete team effort.

The Los Angeles Lakers played better, but this is not championship basketball. This is more than Anthony Davis being out. At this point, every opponent can watch this game and see spreading the Lakers defense out and running variations of the pick and roll offense will give them a shot.

Lake Show Life is extending it’s post-game coverage this season! There will be a short post-game report shortly after the game in addition to the extended post-game of Lake Show Life Lessons! 

More championship coverage for championship fans.

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