Lakers’ Biggest Takeaways from Opening Games of 2021-22 NBA Season
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Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press
The Los Angeles Lakers completed their first week of the 2021-22 NBA season with two wins, two losses and a ton of question marks.
The defense has struggled, which was at least somewhat expected given the offseason changes and current injury report. The offense has been fine, which again measures up to expectations considering the talent level but also the spacing concerns and inevitable adjustment period for Russell Westbrook. Some rotation players have argued for more minutes, and others have possibly started playing their way out of significant roles.
There’s plenty to learn about the Lakers already, but the following three takeaways feel of particular importance going forward.
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Ringo H.W. Chiu/Associated Press
The Lakers have two former MVPs on the roster, and Anthony Davis isn’t one of them (Westbrook and LeBron James). The Brow is, however, the most important hooper in Hollywood.
That’s a subjective distinction, of course, but the eye test swears it’s true.
Davis is the proverbial unstoppable force. He’s also the famed immovable object. He’s a legitimate two-way superstar, which puts him in a class almost by himself. Giannis Antetokounmpo wears the label, as would a healthy Kawhi Leonard, but that might be it. When Davis is 100 percent, he’s in the best-player-on-the-planet discussion.
The Lakers will spend parts of this season leaning on James and Westbrook, but Davis will play the biggest role in setting their ceiling. He’s the only one of the three in the heart of his prime, and when he has it rolling, he is L.A.’s most important player on both ends of the floor.
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Ringo H.W. Chiu/Associated Press
It would be hard to argue for any Lakers newcomer having a better first week than Carmelo Anthony, who jumped above Hall of Famer Moses Malone for No. 9 on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
Saying that, the best first impressions to the fanbase might have come from Austin Reaves or Malik Monk. While the Lakers faithful knew (or at least hoped it knew) what it would get out of Anthony, Reaves and Monk both arrived as relative unknowns. Reaves is an undrafted rookie, and Monk spent the past four seasons getting reserve minutes for the Charlotte Hornets.
These aren’t household names by any stretch, but they are on their way to becoming mainstays in coach Frank Vogel’s rotation.
Reaves plays a similar two-way glue game as former Laker Alex Caruso, and Monk brings both explosive athleticism and ignitable shot-making. Injuries to players like Kendrick Nunn, Talen Horton-Tucker and Wayne Ellington opened the door for Reaves and Monk to get their opportunity, and they’ve seized them to the point of possibly locking up rotation roles for good.
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Ringo H.W. Chiu/Associated Press
LeBron James might be on energy-conservation mode already. It wouldn’t be the worst idea for the 36-year-old’s 19th NBA season.
Hopefully that’s the case, though, because otherwise, he might finally be showing the effects of aging.
Granted, he’s one of the best (if not the very best) to ever lace them up, so his aging curve won’t look like anyone else’s. He’s putting up 26.0 points and 5.3 assists per night, which is a line most players can’t even dream of posting. Dig beneath the numbers, though, and it’s clear this isn’t the same LeBron.
His 45.2 shooting percentage on two-pointers is the lowest since his rookie year. He has never attempted fewer free throws (4.0) or taken a lower percentage of his shots from within three feet of the basket (15 percent, previous low was 28.4). He has only dunked twice and is just 4-of-12 on layups.
Again, maybe he’s pacing himself. Maybe this is a work-smarter-not-harder thing where he doesn’t need to attack as much because he’s hitting just about anything he throws up from the perimeter (14-of-29 from three so far). But if this is the sign of something more, if he’s not able to zip past defenders or explode to the rim like he has in the past, then the question marks around this club become major concerns in a hurry.
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