The Los Angeles Lakers are in trouble. Most media networks will spin it for ratings and clicks but Lake Show Life tells it like it is and won’t stop now. The Lakers lost LeBron James for the immediate future with a high ankle sprain. With the trade deadline four days away as of this writing, the Lakers are scrambling.
Lake Show Life provides a special report Lake Show Life Lessons! The only Los Angeles Lakers extended post-game report with in-depth analysis and highlights.
The Los Angeles Lakers are freefalling from NBA title favorites to potentially fighting for their playoff lives in a couple of weeks. The Lakers lost 99-94 to the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday afternoon, but this is the story that will be discussed throughout the NBA for the next six weeks at least. If the Lakers’ season implodes, everyone will remember where they were exactly when this happened.
https://twitter.com/SpectrumSN/status/1373370774656978945
James was diagnosed with a high ankle sprain and is out indefinitely pending an MRI.
There’s a message to the NBA casuals that may want to downplay this situation. Take it somewhere else to another Lakers website. According to ESPN Stats and Information, this is what has happened throughout LeBron’s 18-year career through his tenure in a Lakers uniform.
- LeBron James has missed 5 consecutive games (or more) just 4 times in his career.
- With just LeBron and no Anthony Davis on the floor, the Lakers have outscored teams by 7 points per 100 possessions this season.
- Take LeBron away and their net efficiency drops to -3.
- LeBron James’ teams are 34-69 in his career when LeBron does not play. The Lakers are 0-1 this season when James does not play.
LeBron took to social media with his thoughts.
https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1373424404923785218
Now the team has to find a way to replace 25.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 8.0 assists that LeBron was averaging coming into the game. They don’t have a lot of time to figure things out either. The next 11 games play out like this…
- Phoenix Suns: Number two seed in the Western Conference.
- New Orleans Pelicans: Fighting for a playoff spot
- Philadelphia 76ers: Number one seed in the Eastern Conference
- Cleveland Cavaliers: They play hard. Remember they had the Lakers on the ropes before a Cavs executive motivated LeBron to outscore the entire Cavs team in the last quarter!
- Orlando Magic: They just upset the Brooklyn Nets.
- Milwaukee Bucks: They are riding a six game winning streak and have won nine of ten.
- Sacramento Kings: Beat the Lakers without LeBron before the All-Star break.
- Los Angeles Clippers: Umm.. they are the Clippers.
- Toronto Raptors: Pray they blow up the squad and start over.
- Miami Heat: 4th in the Eastern Conference.
- Brooklyn Nets: It’s safe to assume that Kevin Durant will be back by the time the Lakers show up.
Oh, it gets better, factor in the April 17/19 back-to-back set with the current top seed Utah Jazz, the Los Angeles Lakers face a lot of contenders in the next month. A lot of them will be on the road.
It would be pointless to analyze this game because the team has bigger fish to fry. This Lake Show Life Lessons report will be a special edition breaking down the timeline of what happened and what to do going forward if you are the Los Angeles Lakers in the next 72 hours.
To the new Los Angeles Lakers fans that are checking us out for the first time, welcome to Lake Show Life Lessons. Our extended post-game report with video analysis will cover the progress for the Los Angeles Lakers the entire season!
Over the next several pages we will provide highlights of certain players and coaches. Afterward, the comment section is loaded with knowledgeable fans adding their basketball knowledge. We usually start with the stars.
This post-game report is all about LeBron James and trying to navigate the Los Angeles Lakers’ future in the next two to three weeks! For the report for the entire game, here’s the link to read.
Let’s start with the player that will be blamed if the Los Angeles Lakers do not get back to the NBA Finals.
Let’s meet the man that single-handedly changed the MVP race and the season for the Los Angeles Lakers!
Up until Saturday, 75 percent of the NBA fans would be hard-pressed to know who Solomon Hill was much less who he played for in the Atlanta Hawks. By 6:30 PM Eastern Standard Time, the entire world probably knows who he is.
After Hill’s collision with LeBron James, forcing the four-time MVP to leave the game with an ankle injury with talks for a possible fifth, you would be challenged to find anyone that doesn’t know him.
After the game, Montrezl Harrell and Dennis Schroder suggested that it may have been more than a freak accident and more of a questionable basketball play. Here are both quotes via Dan Woike of the L.A. Times.
"“We didn’t feel like it was a basketball-type of play,” Montrezl Harrell said of Solomon Hill. “…He had to go through his leg to get through the ball.” Said he didn’t think it was intentional but it was the kind of play “that we need to go look at.”"
Dan Woike quote on Dennis Schroder’s take:
"Dennis Schroder said it was an “unnecessary play” for Solomon Hill to dive at his leg. Also said what Rondo did “was not competing.” Said he’d leave it at that. “That’s not basketball.”"
To be clear on the Rajon Rondo thing. Like anyone is surprised in Lakers Nation…
https://twitter.com/ESPNNBA/status/1373381854888259586
After the backlash from many that included threats of violence, Solomon Hill put out a statement on Twitter.
would never disrespect the game and take a player out purposely... he knows that. that’s all that matters to me. praying for a speedy recovery. #riptothementionstho #moredmsthansaweetie
— solomon hill (@solohill) March 20, 2021
Good luck selling that statement to the Lakers fans, but this writer is not buying much of it either. Notice the hashtag #moredmsthansaweetie. Most people don’t issue apologies while linking a female hip-hop artist who just broke up with her man this past week. If LeBron James wasn’t irritated by the senseless injury, his social media savvy will pick that up and really get upset.
But oh, by the way, Solomon Hill scored 9 points.
Enough about Solomon Hill. The aftermath is the major part of this discussion. Now it’s time to look at the immediate effects of having two Los Angeles Lakers superstars out for at least the rest of March into the middle of April at best. Read on to see what Lake Show Life sees.
Spoiler Alert: It’s not good.
The Los Angeles Lakers may have to make a trade this week to get a playmaker and/or a scorer!
Over the past week, Adrian Wojnarowski had the Lake Show Life staff buzzing with a “Woj Bomb” on his podcast, The Woj Pod that went like this…
"“The Lakers are interesting because I think the Lakers are looking a little bit down the road too at their salary structure,” “Dennis Schroder, they’ve got to pay him this offseason. It’s going to cost well over $20 million a year to keep him.” “I do think they would like to free up some of that money they owe down the line to put themselves in position to keep the guys they have there. I think that’s kind of at the center of some of their talks here around the trade deadline.”"
With the limited assets and financial options, no one really took this statement seriously especially with the trade deadline getting closer to March 25th. Now we are all reminded why he’s Adrian Wojnarowski and we are not.
LeBron’s injury changed everything and the Lakers may have to take some chances offering up players that might not have been available if they want to contend for a back-to-back title. Casual fans will downplay the situation stating the Lakers have time when they actually do not.
Don’t believe Lake Show Life, try ESPN’s top NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski…
"Ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline, the Lakers are faced with an extended period of time without James and Anthony Davis. Western Conference standings could evolve dramatically with James and Davis out for the Lakers, who are only 2.5 games ahead of sixth place. This stretch could significantly reshape the playoff matchups if Lakers tumble a few spots."
The Lakers are currently the third seed in the Western Conference at 28-14. But look at how tight the conference is. The Lake Show is two games in the loss column (Going into Sunday’s game against the Phoenix Suns!) ahead of three teams and a three-game lead ahead of the San Antonio Spurs in the seventh seed.
- Los Angeles Clippers: 27-16
- Denver Nuggets: 25-16…Currently riding a three-game winning streak and has won eight of their last ten games.
- Portland Trail Blazers: 25-16…Currently riding a three-game winning streak and has won seven of their last ten games.
- San Antonio Spurs: 22-17
The Los Angeles Lakers owned the 9th toughest schedule in the league in the second half of the schedule through the next two months. Now that LeBron and AD are out, Lakers fans might want to ask for a recount. The Finals contenders are coming fast and the multiple back-to-back games on the schedule make things worse.
Can the Lakers make a deal? It’s still highly unlikely with the limited options, But if Rob Pelinka can pull a deal off, if he doesn’t win Executive of the Year, there’s no credibility in it.
Until the trade deadline and buyout period ends, there are a few key people in the Lakers organization that are in the hot seat. Let’s start with the head coach, Frank Vogel. Read on…
Frank Vogel has to get it together on some of these rotations with LeBron and AD out!
After the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA title, LeBron James went through a list of people that deserved some respect. Frank Vogel was on that list. Well, the NBA world will definitely know if this guy can coach or is he an older version of Luke Walton when he filled in at Golden State when the Warriors went 73-9 in 2016.
Lake Show Life had been on record criticizing Vogel’s rotation decisions since the first game of LAST season. But examples of this discussion don’t have to go back 24 hours. Let’s start in the backcourt.
Wesley Matthews:
Wesley Matthews was shooting the ball great to start the game knocking down three shots from distance in a two-minute span.
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1373366485196763136
Now understand Wesley Matthews was in a major shooting slump. He had a six-game stretch of just 3 points total this season at his lowest point. If there was the time to let the man play, this was it. Soon after, Vogel sat him down and Wes didn’t attempt another shot until late in the third quarter. He never scored again while attempting only two shots in 18 minutes of playing time total.
Now let’s look at Kentavious Caldwell-Pope…
- KCP is the starting shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers. Okay, DUH!
- KCP averages 7 points a game on seven shots. This is with LeBron James in the lineup.
- KCP scored the same amount of points (Zero!) as the Lake Show Life staff putting this report together and you the reader following this on 5 shots that weren’t even close.
Would it shock you that Kentavious Caldwell-Pope played more minutes at 21?
Oh, it doesn’t stop there. How about the frontline decisions? Here’s a comment from a reader wondering where Damian Jones was for the second half.
Bossman:
"Why was D. Jones not in the game in the second half? He could at least help on the rebounding front when you play small ball and can’t shoot…"
The Los Angeles Lakers were bullied on the backboards by John Collins (16 rebounds!) and Clint Capela (16 rebounds!). Even though the Lakers outrebounded Atlanta, those two combined for 11 offensive rebounds that turned into instant second-chance points.
In 15 minutes, Damian Jones had 9 rebounds (3 offensive!) and was active enough to warrant more minutes. Oh, by the way, Damian does not miss shots. Jones made 15 of his 16 field goal attempts since being signed to two 10-day contracts. Make that 16 of 17…
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1373359736402284546
Assuming the Lakers keep Jones (No decision as of this writing!) on the roster, Vogel needs to figure out a way to use Jones’ athleticism in Davis’ absence. Marc Gasol is not going to get better as the season goes on and Montrezl Harrell is too small to lean and stop opposing centers.
Speaking of Montrezl Harrell, the next few weeks is probably not what he took a major pay cut for. Will he play hard? Sure. He was the only source of offense for the Lakers with 16 points in dominating fashion. Read on to see what the Lake Show Life staff is worried about.
The Los Angeles Lakers need Montrezl Harrell to keep his cool!
Montrezl Harrell is this writer’s favorite player on the Los Angeles Lakers roster. Talk about Harrell’s efforts with disrespect in the comment section is usually done at the reader’s risk. Nobody on the team plays with more energy and works harder than Trezl.
But he has a major flaw in his game. His emotions. If he doesn’t get calls, he complains to the referees (More than LeBron and this is saying something!). He gets technical fouls that will affect his reputation in the postseason.
When he signed his two-year $19 million contract this offseason, he had to have championship aspirations playing next to Anthony Davis and LeBron James. Both are gone for an extended period of time and his role is about to change dramatically. The Lakers tried to run plays through Harrell and the Hawks broadcast team did a poor job of hiding their glee.
If the Lakers’ shooters continue to struggle, opponents will pack the paint and dare them to shoot. This will affect Harrell’s production. Also, if you took time to see the highlights above, more than likely other NBA teams have too. It’s a lot harder when teams move you up the scouting report for NBA games. Trezl just skyrocketed to near the top of the list.
Finally, Montrezl Harrell will have to amp up his attention to detail on the defensive end. He will be counted on to make precise rotations to help out on the defensive backline to at least put a body in front for potential charges. Even if Marc Gasol returns, he will be brought out of the paint for 3 point shooting from opposing centers.
Finally, his social media post a couple of weeks ago that got even Jeanie Buss’ attention over the All-Star break can’t be ignored. The Lakers need Trezl to keep his cool just as much as his production.
Who’s at the top of the scouting report? Read on to see who that is…
Introducing the Los Angeles Lakers’ number one scoring option… KYLE KUZMA!
Remember all of those conversations on how Kyle Kuzma struggled as the third scoring option behind Anthony Davis and LeBron James? Oh well, those days are gone for a little while as the Lakers need Kuz’s scoring badly. Even plays like this will get a pass…
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1373370536919638016
But 8 points on 3-8 shooting will not be overlooked. After LeBron left the game. Kuzma looked like most of the roster that was in a state of shock when the best player didn’t return. He’s going to have to get over that shock very quickly because he has to do the one thing that everyone knew he could do since his rookie year…Get buckets in LeBron and AD’s absence.
Now it can be done. He did it last year on the road on Oklahoma City when he dropped 36 points in one of his best scoring performances of his career.
The challenge for Kyle Kuzma is scoring like he did before the stars showed up and doing all of the little things that made him a major part of the Lakers’ future.
If he struggles over the next month, Lake Show Life will have to dust off this article written a while back about his polarizing presence in Lakers Nation.
If he struggles as he did against the Hawks, this one player has to be looked at as a potential reason. Kuzma will be running the wings and cutting in the half-court. Somebody has to get the ball to him in the right position for him to succeed. Read on to see the biggest player storyline for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Dennis Schroder’s performance from this point on will end the biggest debate on Lake Show Life!
This website has the most intelligent Lakers fans in the world. Sometimes the comment section is more entertaining than the articles with the passionate debates over players and their worth to the Los Angeles Lakers franchise.
Last year it was Danny Green and Rajon Rondo. This year, Dennis Schroder wins by a landslide.
The discussions about Dennis Schroder have been going as far back as the trading deadline of LAST year! When the Lakers flipped Danny Green for Schroder, the debates started raging. The writer of this article has consistently questioned Dennis Schroder’s playmaking and shot selection for most of the season.
The Atlanta Hawks’ broadcast team of Dominique Wilkins, Vince Carter and Bob Rathburn described Schroder’s overall play almost tongue in cheek as to say “Well we’ve seen this before, he’s your problem now!”.
His uneven play this season wouldn’t be so magnifying if he wasn’t negotiating his contract in the middle of the season via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
"“I want to be a Laker for a long time,” Schroder said. “I just want it to be fair.”"
After February 16th, Schroder became eligible for contract extension containing a 20 percent raise next season and eight percent raises in each season afterward. All told, his extension maxes out to four years at $83.3 million.
The Lakers are already cap-strapped as is trying to sign not only Schroder but Talen Horton-Tucker and Alex Caruso as well. Lakers Governor, Jeanie Buss is already on record saying the Lakers will pay the luxury tax because of LeBron James and his championship window, but that doesn’t mean spending a ton of money for a point guard that tends to grind the offense to a halt like in the Atlanta game.
Does this cover all of the problems for the Los Angeles Lakers? Hardly. Changes will come quickly and there will be surprises. Lake Show Life will do our best to keep Lakers Nation updated in Lake Show Life Lessons post-game reports.
Lake Show Life has extended its post-game coverage this season! There will be short post-game reports shortly after the game in addition to the extended post-game of Lake Show Life Lessons!
More championship coverage for championship fans.