The Los Angeles Lakers went to Chicago and handed the Bulls some serious Chi-Town heat! Anthony Davis was critical of his play as of late (Checking notes: Suck!), but his level of play was taken care of basically after the opening tip.
Anthony Davis is the E.F. Hutton of the Los Angeles Lakers. When he talks…people listen. It started a few weeks ago when he didn’t like the defensive intensity.
Anthony Davis vents frustration about lack of defense being played by this revamped Lakers team: "We didn't play any defense. Our defense was shit tonight. We didn't play one lick of defense and them guys did whatever they want." pic.twitter.com/IDv3cxtBkh
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) January 8, 2021
Since then, the Lake Show is the number one team in defensive efficiency. Then after the victory after the Milwaukee Bucks, he described his overall game for the lack of a better word “Suck” according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
"“Right now, to be hard on myself, man, I think I suck right now,” “I’m not making shots. I’m not making free throws. But I think tonight my aggressiveness, just being a [post-up threat] and getting to the paint, allowed guys to get open.”"
For the record, Lake Show Life strongly disagreed with him in our extended post-game report.
Then AD made the staff look like basketball savants as he destroyed his hometown team, the Chicago Bulls. The Lakers went back to their mission statement of huge runs early and following the superstars as they blew Chicago off the floor 101-90 in a game that wasn’t close.
After watching Zach Lavine and Coby White play extremely well in Los Angeles, they were rendered non-factors in this game. This Lakers team is a very different beast away from the Staples Center.
If you are looking for analysis, blame the Bulls. It takes two teams actually competing to do that.
The good from the Los Angeles Lakers’ win:
The Lakers started yet another game with a huge run:
The Los Angeles Lakers have concentrated on getting huge runs early in the first quarter on the road this season. This game was no different. AD’s hot start propelled an 18-2 run at the start that ended the Bulls’ chances.
Anthony Davis:
AD was going to put on a show for his hometown. Nobody thought he would put on a basketball clinic. He had 17 points before he got out the shower. He made the Chicago Bulls look like the Windy City Bulls. This is just the first-half statistics.
- 38 offensive possessions
- 26 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal.
- 86.7% true shooting
So much for his shooting slump. Davis finished with 37 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block in only 28 minutes. He basically showed the NBA world that “The Scheme” is back in effect.
LeBron James:
While AD gashed the Bulls’ interior defense, it allowed LeBron numerous lanes to cut for easy baskets.
Wait for it… pic.twitter.com/5CVE0bU7wV
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) January 24, 2021
LeBron filled up the box score with 17 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. He did have six turnovers, but did it really matter in this game?
Talen Horton Tucker played in this game!
After a couple of DNP-CDs that got the comment sections buzzing, THT got to play in his hometown. He actually contributed as well scoring 10 points with 2 rebounds and a steal. Classy move by Frank Vogel allowing him to play. This franchise does not have many missteps these days on how they treat their players. This will go a long way in keeping THT engaged and not losing his confidence.
The bad of the Los Angeles Lakers’ win:
Look the Los Angeles Lakers won this game by 100 a ton folks. Can’t we all get a good laugh in here?
Lebron James misses dunks blames Zach LaVine & says he pushed him pic.twitter.com/UWVYw4ynRD
— Main Team (@MainTeamSports) January 24, 2021
Lake Show Life loves you LeBron, but you lost the ball and missed the dunk. Film don’t lie. Let the team laugh in the film session and move on.
The Chicago Bulls offense and defense.
The third quarter. Chicago cut a 30 point halftime lead to 14 by the end of the third quarter.
The story of the Los Angeles Lakers’ win:
The Los Angeles Lakers do not lose on the road folks.
- This win puts them at 9-0 which adds to their franchise record.
- In addition to that they are the only team undefeated team in the NBA.
- These games are not close. Outside of the Milwaukee game on Thursday, the Lakers are ending these games basically by halftime or the end of three quarters at the latest.
If the Lakers play a bad team focused, forget their chances of winning, they probably can’t even score on this bunch. The Lake Show gave up 17 points in the first quarter and 16 in the second quarter. By halftime, the lead was 30 points and it would have been worse if KCP had gotten a 3 pointer off in time just before the buzzer.
Bottom line, the Golden State Warriors’ loss was cold water dropped on the Lakers. They did not play around with this Bulls team and made it clear that a big comeback was a one-time thing with no chance of it happening in this game.
Off to Cleveland next…
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1353183803267706881
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.