LAKERS -vs- HORNETS - 7-9-23 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Summer League Game 4... Colin Castleton led the Lakers with 14 points in the first half as they battled the Hornets in their second Vegas game. They trailed just 40-39 at the half as both teams struggled a bit with the shot early on.

Late in the third, back-to-back steals and dunks for the Lakers led to a 6-point lead. They carried that lead into the fourth quarter.

A steal, block and a three by D’Moi Hodge forced a timeout as the Lakers went up 13. That blew the game open for the Lakers, and they held onto the 93-75 win.

The new guys are looking more and more comfortable as these games go along and are starting to play to their strengths more.


Christie -- -- I’ve been waiting for a game for Max to struggle with the shot to see what he’d do. He missed a bunch of jumpers (still went 1-2 from three, which will actually lower his percentage), but ended up with 11 points on 10 attempts. So not great. He had some tough looks, but just wasn’t completely dialed in. So what else did we see from him? He had 6 assists. He found Hodge for a three. He hit Swider with a great bounce pass on the break for a dunk. He found him again for a three. He also spotted Lewis on a hit ahead for another dunk. So good ball movement. Defensively, he can always put in a strong effort there to contribute. His length caused problems as he had 4 blocks. He blocked Miller on a three (Miller 4-18, 0-7 from three). He blocked another three on a close out. He tied up McGowens on a drive (McGowens went 4-15 and 1-7 from three). Lastly, if the jumper isn’t falling, he’s also showing a very quick first step. He had to be hacked to prevent a dunk on one drive. He’d score a layup on another iso blow by. So, with the shot not falling great, he was still making an impact and leading the Lakers with a +17. That’s how you work your way into the rotation and then stay there. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 3-10 shooting (1-2 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 6 assists, 4 blocks, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a +17.

Hood-Schifino -- -- His best all-around game today. I really liked this one from him as he did well in some of the problem areas for him previously. First, he finally made a three. He sank both attempts from behind the arc. The shotclock was a little low so he drained a couple of them. His midrange was a little better, as well. His first attempt to start the game, he swished a very confident pull-up that he stepped into nicely. He also had a strong attack where he ball-faked, attacked down the lane, bumped off the defender to get some space and then hit the floater. That’s where you see he can cause problems for the D, overpowering his man, not over penetrating, and then showing the nice touch. Very hard to guard that combination of strength and finesse on the next level. So we got some efficient scoring. He did struggle with the freethrows, a lot of short misses today, typically on the first attempt for whatever reason. Not sure what has been going on there. Defensively, he kept his man in front of him all game. I only saw one breakdown there where he had to try for the strip. That was a great sign. “I think the game is slowing down for me,” Hood-Schifino said afterward. Playmaking-wise he had some excellent no-lookers to teammates for scores. He was under control always and set up teammates well throughout. Still some issues finishing at the rim. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 5-10 shooting (2-2 from three, 3-6 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 5 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a +13.

Swider -- -- Weak shooting game from him going just 2-9. He’s been smoking from three. When that’s not going for him, his minutes become a problem. He’s undersized at the PF spot and it impacts rebounding and rim protection negatively. He battled there but also made some business decisions on rim challenges he decided not to attempt. When he misses a wide open shot, you know he’s a little off. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-12 shooting (2-9 from three) to go with 8 boards, 1 steal, 1 block and 2 fouls in 28 minutes. He was a +12.

Castleton -- -- I’m kind of shocked he ended up with only 3 assists in this game. He had a nasty bounce pass through defenders to Hodge cutting for a layup. He also pushed out a rebound like a guard and found his Florida teammate Fudge for a dunk on the break. They put the ball in his hands in the high post a lot in this game. He’d handoff and screen quite a bit. They’d flow into some two-man actions as well and teammates found him. He had 14 points on 6-8 shooting in the first half to lead all scorers. Great touch around the rim as he’s shown all summer league. He also hit a face-up 17-footer out of that elbow area, as well. Very nice. So we saw the passing, high scoring, the handle, and also some excellent rebounding. This has been an area the team has struggled a bit, but Castleton had 14 today (including 3 offensive). One of those offensive boards, he missed a jumphook, but bounced up quickly to tip it in just as it was coming off the rim. Great job showing that kind of activity on the glass. If there was a weak part of his game today, it was the rim protection. Not a lot of presence there in this one. Still, overall, he was the best player on the court. The Stats: He scored 21 points on 8-13 shooting (5-5 from the line) to go with 14 boards (3 offensive), 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 5 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a +6.

Hodge -- -- He’s looking better by the game. This is more of the kind of game I expect from him. Something in that 16-20 point range, some good defensive plays on and off ball. Very good outing. He had a great stretch in the fourth that blew the game open. He stole the ball from behind a man and threw it up floor to Lewis for a dunk. He then blocked a three next time down and followed that up on the other end with a step-back three. In addition to the three ball, he showed some ability to get to the rim. He had a quick attack, rejecting a screen for a layup to lose a defender late in the game. Some steady two-way ball on both ends. Hopefully, we see a couple more games like this, but you can see how you might be able to plug him into an NBA game pretty quickly and why the Lakers signed him to the two-way. A little sloppy on the passing, but otherwise strong outing. The Stats: He scored 16 points on 6-11 shooting (2-6 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 25 minutes. He was a +7.

Lewis -- -- As the Lakers play with more space, purpose and tempo that favors his game. He’s certainly getting more comfortable and improving by the game, but I think the team improvement really helps him to show off his talent more. He’s going to be fun to watch develop. He sank a couple corner threes tonight, including a step-back that had the crowd buzzing. He mixed in a couple of dunks, one on the break, the other a curl off ball into the lane to take the pass and finish. Very curious to see where he will be when we fast forward to this time next year. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 5-9 shooting (2-2 from three) to go with 4 boards (2 offensive), 2 assists, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 20 minutes. He was a +13.

Baugh -- -- Seems like he gives me at least one head-shaking bonehead play a game. He had a reach about 35-40 feet from the hoop that left him badly off balance and allowed his man take a straight line to the lane, collapse the D and setup and open three. On the plus side, he got his only score stripping a man and dunking on the break (surprised he didn’t elevate better on that finish as he has looked fairly strong on drives). The Stats: He scored 7 points on 1-4 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 1 board, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 turnover and no fouls in 14 minutes. He was a +7.

Fudge -- -- Short minutes, but a few nice plays while out there. He blocked a couple of shots on a great recoveries. He’s got that athleticism and length that covers a lot of ground quickly and will give him a chance to be an excellent defender at the next level. Offensively, he had a couple of dunks. One on a lob from JHS, the other on a feed from Castleton on the break. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-2 shooting to go with 2 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 blocks and 1 foul in 11 minutes. He was a +3.

Killeya-Jones -- -- The hands didn’t look so great today as he fumbled a couple of passes away. That cost him some sure points. He also had a wild finish on the break, leaving his feet to soon to blow another opportunity. His one score came on a layup off the break off an excellent no-looker from JHS. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-4 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 4 boards (@ offensive), 1 steal, 1 block and 1 foul in 14 minutes. He was a +12.

DuBois -- -- As hoped, we kept the starting lineup the same for the second game in a row. This time the team got off to a steady start… Defensively, they went into a bit more zone as it was a lot more in sync than previous games. Still some breakdowns and not their best three-point defense during the game. They still held the Hornets, though, to a weak 9-36 shooting from three… We really involved Castleton in a lot more play calls and touches in this game and good things generally happened…

[Mege]

Thanks DB!!

[Alpha]

Fun game to watch. Excited to see who makes it to camp.
Thanks DB!

[TDRock]

Thanks DB
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#IStillBelieveTaurean

[Don Draper]

Thanks DB

[tox]

Thanks DB! Missed this one but glad to see JHS played a strong game

[Laker7]

Thanks DB! CC is looking more and more like the 14th player on the roster. Not a lot of options out there at this point other than Biyombo. If the choice is between those two I would go with CC. CC is shooting 24 of 38 from the floor for a 63% FG%.

5 players in double figures (MaxC, JHS, CC, Hodge and MaxL) is really good for a summer league team. Shows these guys are learning to play the right way. A lot of shots within the offense rather than guys playing hero ball.
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Darvin Ham is an idiot!

[LakerDYnasty72]

Christie- the way he played today keeps affirming to me that Ham could have plugged him in for a few minutes at a time in the playoffs. Unlike Beasley, he can do other things when his shot isn't falling. I wanted so badly to see what he do with Murray of Denver.

Hood-Schifino- I made a note about how thick he is in the legs. Seems like he's not only adjusting to the speed of the NBA game, but also developing the conditioning necessary to excel at this level. At 20 years of age and handling the ball as much as he does, and to have only one turnover over two games is such an excellent sign.

I'm now seeing what the brass was seeing when he became the choice.

Castleton- We've been handed two gifts in the last three years from Aaron Reilly. First, it was Austin Reaves. Now, he's gifted us another client from his stable in Castleton. Only two areas of work will make this guy almost a perfection addition along side AD: develop more strength and gain more experience of the physicality of the NBA game.

Otherwise, he has the perfect skillset for our team.

Lewis- he reminds me of a more athletic Nick Young. I think he'll be more balanced than Young because he's seems more invested on the defensive end. He's a lump of clay that can be molded into something very, very special.

Hodge- he's got a place in this league. I'm hoping it's with us because he's got game. His advantage is his maturity. Being an older player enables him to come in and contribute sooner than later. He plays both ends of the floor. What more could we want from UDFA?

Fudge- his upside is so very apparent. He's long, athletic, and loves the game. We're developing some serious talent deep into our pipeline. It feels like what the Dodgers do when their farm is stocked with top prospects.

Swider- if Beasley can stick on a roster with only adding the skill of shooting, so can Swider

Those are the players that stood out to me. The rest.,,eh.

Thanks DB!

[LakerDYnasty72]

[Laker7]

[Dr. Laker]

Thanks, DB!
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On Lakersground, a concern troll is someone who is a fan of another team, but pretends to be a Lakers fan with "concerns".

[slavavov]

Thanks DB!

I'm still not fully solid on Castleton, because I'm not sure how much of what he's shown is duplicatable in real NBA games. But I love the 14 rebounds he had today. He needs to show lots of ferocity boxing out and going after rebounds, but he's definitely an interesting player right now.

I'm also hopeful for Lewis. As LakerDYnasty72 said, he's like a ball of clay right now. I love how he attacked on the fast break and threw down two jams in transition today. Would love to see more defense and 3-point shooting from him, especially in catch-and-shoot situations.

If I were Lewis, I would watch lots of video of Michael Cooper and try to model my game after him.
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[pio2u]

Thx DB;
The team and the coaching are all starting to gel. We've seen improvement from top to bottom. Kudos to the guys for taking it up a notch.

[LakersRGolden]

JHS looks like a totally different player when he's moving towards the rim and when he's floating on the perimeter. I'm not sure what that means for fit with the current Big club, but it gets interesting when they give him the ball and have him drive.

[DancingBarry]

[manlisten]

That's an interesting note about JHS playing full games in college. The Lakers often target players with strange quirks like that which seem to depress their value in the draft. Lewis also has an interesting backstory as to how he ended up at Pepperdine and slipped, as well as a number of their previous draft picks over the years. It's been an effective strategy.
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It was reminiscent of one of those Most Interesting Man in the World advertisements: "I don't always shoot 6-for-28 from the field, but when I do, I become the youngest player in league history to score 28,000 career points."