About a week ago, Lakers coach JJ Redick and LeBron James Talk about Margin of the gamethings that help provide support and cover for the team when it is not perfect. Internally, there weren’t great options for the Lakers to extend those margins, both said.
In some ways, only a massive roster rebuild will solve the problem. James will always be 40 years old. Anthony Davis He will always have his issues in transition defense because of the way he hits the hoop. The Lakers will always lose the athletic battle due to a low volume of three-point attempts.
But on Saturday, one player showed in his first 12 minutes of the season the ways he can create more room for the Lakers to foul.
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Jared Vanderbilthas been out since February 1 due to foot injuries, and signed on during the second quarter of the season The Lakers won 118-108 on the Golden State Warriors and immediately made an impact, providing the much-needed boost that his skill set can provide.
“Fando was great,” Reddick said. “He did all the things we needed him to do.”
Vanderbilt’s only bucket came on an offensive rebound, but he had three steals and four rebounds, extending his possessions on the offensive side and closing them on the defensive side.
“I knew I might be a little rusty as far as rhythm and knowing the plays and all that stuff,” Vanderbilt said. “So my main goal was to go out there and play hard. Bring the energy and then everything else – just control what is controllable and everything else will come into play.
It was the little things he did that stood out as the Lakers played another 48 minutes of good basketball to win their third straight game.
“It seemed like he didn’t miss a beat,” James said. “I mean he flies around. What he does doesn’t always show up in the scoresheet.”
Vanderbilt’s contributions proved valuable to a Lakers team that had to start Rui Hachimura Late scratch due to a calf injury.
Max Christie and Gabe Vincent, two other players tasked with helping the Lakers with the little things, defended themselves Stephen Curry Remarkably, he held the Warriors star to 13 points on 4-for-17 shooting, and Curry missed all eight of his attempts in the second half.
“It’s Steve, man,” James said. “I just hope he misses. Put the bodies in front of him, and I just hope he misses.”
Davis dominated the Warriors’ front court, which was without Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green, scoring 36 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. James scored 25 points and had 12 assists, and Austin Reeves added 16 points and had seven assists.
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“In the last two games, our top three players have played very well and everyone has done their part,” Redick said. “And this is a great team, with guys starring. And so for Vando, he’s starring, Gabe is starring, Max Christie is starring, Jackson Hayes is starring, all these guys. … And that creates margin for us to be Great team.
The Lakers (25-18) continue their Grammy journey on Monday in Charlotte.
“We have to be ready to play every game, no matter who we play,” Reeves said. “We need to go into every game we play to continue to improve. We can’t take our foot off the gas. We have to do that every game and hope we have a good trip.”
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This story originally appeared on Los Angeles Times.
