WIZARDS -at- LAKERS – 3-26-19 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

37 Assists… The ball was moving freely, the transition game was going, and they were hitting their shots.

The Lakers controlled this one throughout on their way to the 124-106 victory over the Wizards.

“Everybody felt in a good rhythm because we had the ball moving,” LeBron said as the Lakers finished with 48 made baskets on 37 assists (that tied their season high). LeBron had 14 of those.

Lance stole the show a bit in the first half after getting a defender stumbling backward off balance and hitting a jumper with the bench going crazy.

"I ran out on the court a little bit, I forgot where I was at," Rondo said of the play.


LeBron -- -- He had 12 points, 5 boards and 7 assists in the first half on triple-double pace, but he didn’t have the boards in the second half. The game had a little bit of an All Star kind of feel in intensity at times and I think our vet playmakers played a bit loose like that on both ends. Entertaining game from him. A lot of assists for the team tonight as the offense was free flowing. He’s definitely putting in a good effort out there. He said he didn’t know how many games he was going to play the rest of the season, but was going to put in a strong effort if out there. The Stats: He scored 23 points on 11-20 shooting (1-6 form three, 0-2 from the line) to go with 7 boards, 14 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 34 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: Flatfooted on help D and we gave up a dunk on the first possession. He missed a three from the top of the arc. He found Kuzma for a layup and KCP for a three on back-to-back possessions. He missed a floater. He up-faked, attacked baseline and missed. Sweet bounce pass between defenders to McGee for the dunk. He palmed the ball as he turned the corner and scored the layup. He bumped off the D in transition and was fouled for FTs, he airballed the first attempt and clanked the second one too long. He sealed a fronting defender, took the pass and scored the lob. He fumbled the ball away. Over-the-head pass to Kuzma cutting for a layup. He sank a pull-up wing jumper. He sank a jumper from the top of the key. He missed a corner three. He attacked to his left and scored with his right on the over-the-head backhand layup. He hammered down a breakaway dunk off the 30-foot feed from Rondo. He ball-watched and gave up a putback dunk. He bounced to Kuzma cutting baseline for a reverse. Second Half: He swished a deep three. He sank an elbow turnaround on iso. He reversed off the long pass from Rondo. He pulled up from the wing and missed a three. No-looker to McGee in transition for a dunk. He drew the D and hit KCP for the open three. He missed a 17-footer. He missed a wing three. He found Moe for a layup. Quick first step baseline and he powered in a layup. He tried to thread a pass that wasn’t there, turnover. He missed a three next time down. He fired a pass out of bounds next time down. He sank a baseline fade. He iso’d, attacked the paint and dumped it to McGee for the dunk. He knocked a ball loose from behind, took the outlet and fed McGee trailing for the dunk. He missed a turnaround.

Kuzma -- -- He started out clanking threes from the perimeter, then settled into more cutting and working off ball. He had 13 points on 4-10 shooting in the first half. Some struggles finishing at the rim or getting up shots cleanly off cuts. He was looking a bit too much for his shot versus finding teammates. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 5-15 shooting (1-4 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +12. The Action: He missed a wing three in transition. Nice cut in early offense and LeBron found him for the score. He missed a wing three off a handoff. Way long on a three and he bricked, time to mix it up. He missed a drive. He cut behind his man and LeBron slipped a pass over the defender’s head for Kuzma to score a layup. He got beasted in the post to give up a layup. He was stripped trying to rise up. He drew FTs on a cut, he made both. He broke up a lob pass on one end and drew FTs trying to finish on the break on the other, he made both. He drained a three from the wing to bail out a poor offensive set. He backdoored his man and LeBron hit him for the reverse. He changed directions to get free at the rim but missed the layup. Second Half: Charge trailing the break and attacking a crowd. He saved a pass to Rondo, cut to the corner as the ball was fed to McGee, who no-look handed off to Kuzma for the layup (may have stepped out of bounds). He blew a layup. He was blocked on a slip screen layup. He cut and lost the ball. He airballed a runner.

Rondo -- -- The ball was moving around freely tonight and a lot of transition opportunities, as well. That plays into his strengths. Luke was a little irked with him for the wind-up passes (he had one under feed that went out of bounds not close to anyone). Frustrating and times to watch him on D. It seemed he needed to warm up in each half. Funny watching him on the bench off that Stephenson play. He was running onto the court waving a towel right next to the bench then eventually going to the floor. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 3-7 shooting (1-4 from three) to go with 3 boards, 10 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 33 minutes. He was a +6. The Action: His lob pass hit the rim off the jumpball, turnover. He attacked left and scored with his right. No help and he gave up a layup. He lost his man and gave up a layup. He hit LeBron over the fronting D for a score. He swiped a pass, pushed it up and underhanded the pass out of bounds by about 15 feet. He missed a jumper from the top of the key. He hit LeBron down court for the breakaway dunk. He missed a deep three with the shotclock winding down. Second Half: Lost on D again and his man scored a layup. He got dumped on a moving screen (flop with some screams involved), charge. He sank a wing three left open. Long pass to LeBron off a missed FT for a reverse. He fed KCP for a three out of a timeout. He swiped a pass and hit KCP for the layup. He missed a three at the top of the arc. He fed Lance in transition for the score. He attacked and scored an uncontested layup. He lobbed to McGee for a dunk. He chucked a pass down court to KCP for the uncontested layup.

McGee -- -- Another great effort from McGee. He seems to be back to his early season form. Just another 20-point, 15-board, 4-block, 2-steal effort. There was a play in the first half where he blocked a drive, then ripped the ball away from the Wizards for a steal, then quickly threw it down court to KCP for a dunk (block, steal, assist in one play that lasted about two seconds). The Stats: He scored 20 points on 9-11 shooting (2-3 from the line) to go with 15 boards (5 offensive), 2 assists, 2 steals, 4 blocks, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 32 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: He rejected a drive and controlled it. He tipped in a LeBron miss to clean up the dribble penetration. He dunked off the slip screen when LeBron threaded a bounce pass. He blocked a drive, ripped the ball from a Wizard then two-handed a pass down court to KCP in stride for a dunk (so nice). He threw down a tough lob pass out of a timeout. He grabbed an offensive board and missed a jumphook. He threw down a lob from KCP. And-1 reverse jam off the drive and dish from Lance, he missed the FT. Second Half: He missed a putback and drew FTs on the second attempt, he made both. Nice handoff to Kuzma baseline for the layup. He tapped out an offensive board. He dunked off the sweet no-looker from LeBron. He drew a charge on Bryant running right into him. He intimidated a man into a travel. He dunked off the drive and dish from LeBron. He dunked off the lob from Rondo. He rain the floor and LeBron hit him trailing for a dunk (then he hustled back on D to contest at the rim).

Caldwell-Pope -- -- He scored 13 points in the first quarter and finished with 19 in the first half. “The basket is as big as the ocean,” he said at halftime. He had a lot of easy scores in transition in addition to draining the threes. He was just killing it out there. “He’s found himself a nice rhythm right now,” Luke said. The Stats: He scored 29 points on 10-17 shooting (6-12 from three, 3-3 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 1 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 36 minutes. He was a +18. The Action: He drained a three on a kickout. Way short on a three. He scored a layup on the break. McGee hit him with a perfect outlet for a breakaway dunk. He attacked baseline, drew the D and lobbed to McGee for the dunk. He sank a step-back three. He drained a wing three off some soft D. He sank a wing three behind a screen. He was fouled on a corner three, he made all three FTs. He missed a three straight away. He threw a kickout out of bounds. Second Half: He missed a three off a nice wrinkle on the weave play to start the half (had McGee cutting for the lob and KCP coming the other way for the three). He was blocked on a layup. He deflected a pass to ignite a break. He swished a wing three out of a timeout. He missed a wing three in transition. He sank a wide open corner three. He missed from the same spot next time down. He took an outlet and scored a layup. He missed a three at the top of the arc. He leaked out and Rondo chucked it to him for a layup.

Caruso -- -- He sank a three for his only bucket. Usual scrappy effort on D, but not as disruptive as he has been of late. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-3 shooting from three (1-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 20 minutes. He was a +12. The Action: Lob pass to McGee out of a timeout for a dunk. Quick counter strike off the made basket and he drew FTs, he made one. He threw a pocket pass while Moe was popping, turnover. Pocket pass to Wagner for the dunk. He drew an off-ball charge stepping in front of his man after he cut. Second Half: He fell down and lost the ball. He missed a corner three. He sank the corner three off a swing pass. He missed a wing three.

Wagner -- -- He showed off that quick first step on a few plays tonight. Very mobile offensively. Good to see him get a little bit of run. We really need to play him more in these last games. All of this time is huge for his confidence and to help him know what to work on during the offseason -- strength/D…the Dirk fade (I kid but he would kill it with that). Just getting him minutes, though, will help with the turnovers and decision-making. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-5 shooting (0-1 from three to go with 1 board, 2 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 12 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: Quick spin baseline and he scored a layup. He blocked a post attempt on the other end. He missed a rainbow three. Quick first step baseline and he drew FTs on the drive, he made one. Sloppy help challenge to hit a shooter for FTs. He threw down off the pocket pass from Caruso. He was picked trying to post up a small. Second Half: He was fouled trying to finish at the rim, he made both FTs. He was called for a travel off an up-fake at the three line. He powered up a layup under the hoop. He was stripped in the post. He powered up for a layup off a nice feed from LeBron.

Williams -- -- Look at the +19 in this one in 15 minutes. They were getting stops with him out there. Great job drawing charges and rotating on D. Loved seeing that. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 1-2 shooting (3-4 from the line) to go with 4 boards (3 offensive) to go with 3 fouls in 15 minutes. He was a +19. The Action: He was fouled in transition for FTs, he made both. He stepped in and drew a charge on a spin move from a big. He drew another charge on help to get a stop. He denied another drive cutting off baseline and then controlling the rebound. He drew FTs and made one. Second Half: He cleaned up a miss.

Stephenson -- -- Entertaining game out there with some good hustle, as well. While I hate the “Lance make ‘em dance” phrase because it’s repeated every game, tonight he had one of those that had the bench on their feet, on the floor, on the court, etc. going crazy. Technically, he stepped on the defender’s foot, which made him stumble backward badly. But in real-time, man, it looked like he the defender was running backwards he was fooled so badly. “I was more impressed with his 10 rebounds,” Luke said. Kind of Phil Jackson response there. Well done. Easily the play of the game and one that will be shown all over the place. Funny dance afterward from him, too, lol. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 3-7 shooting (1-3 from three) to go with 10 boards, 5 assists, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 25 minutes. He was a +12. The Action: He missed a tip at the front of the rim. He shook his defender badly and sank a pull-up jumper that had Staples buzzing for a minute. He attacked and hit McGee for the And-1 dunk. He missed a step-back wing three after losing his man. Second Half: He scored a layup in transition. He set up Moe for FTs. He was called for a charge. He sank a three out of a timeout. He missed a three on iso.

Bonga -- -- He came in for the final minute. Nothing to report. The Stats: He had no stats in 1 minute. He was a +5. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Machado -- -- Also in for the final minute and he got a score. Bench was happy for him. Let’s get him some more run. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-2 shooting (1-1 from the line) in 1 minute. He was a +5. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: He iso’d and missed the jumper from the top of the key. He scored an And-1 layup on the break (bench on their feet), he made the FT.

Walton -- -- Poor D by Rondo and LeBron to start the game, giving up layups and dunks… Down 17-15 when Caruso came in for Rondo and Lance for LeBron midway through the quarter… Wagner and Williams in for McGee and Kuzma, Lakers up 1 with 3 minutes left… The Lakers led 34-29 after the first quarter… He started a McGee, Wagner, LeBron, Lance, Caruso lineup… Lakers up 8 when Rondo returned for Caruso with 9 minutes left… Williams and KCP in for McGee and Stephenson… They pushed out to a 13-point lead… He sat LeBron/Rondo with a possession left in the half… The Lakers led 67-56 at the half… They pulled out to a 17-point lead off a couple of threes from their vets and forced a timeout… The lead was trimmed to 13 off a couple of threes and Luke called a timeout… Caruso in for Kuzma up 14… He went with Williams, Stephenson, KCP, Caruso, Rondo lineup up 12… Moe in for KCP… The Lakers led 97-83 heading into the fourth… McGee, Wagner, LeBron, Stephenson, Caruso lineup… KCP and Rondo in for Lance and Caruso up 11… Moe out for Kuzma, lead down to 8… LeBron out for Lance up 10… LeBron back in with 2:27 left up 11. Kuzma out… The Lakers had 37 assists tonight…

[PLATNUM]

Thank you, DB... as always.
I saw a few highlights and honestly... it's good to see the guys having some fun out there (on that Lance play)

We need some damn continuity though. Can't build a winning culture with 5-6 new players on the squad year in and year out.
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"Dread it, run from it... destiny arrives all the same."

[akgolf]

Thanks DB!

[RYZ]

Thanks, DB.

Thanks for nothing, Lakers.

[oldlakerfan]

Thanks DB

Gee we have seemed to loose the spirit of tank.

Give me more Bonga and Wagner so we can see what we have.

Caruso has been a nice surprise.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB, excellent recap as always! Sounds like this was an enjoyable game to watch, in spite of the TNT 'Players only' coverage. Good to know the ball was moving, and players were able to have some fun and still play winning ball out there last night.

[TDRock]

Woooooot! Yay winning!

Thanks DB!