Lackluster start for the Los Angeles Lakers
Photograph: Adam Pantozzi/NBAE/Getty Images
This lackluster start to the season for the LA Lakers comes with little-to-no surprise. The Lakers made some minor additions in the off-season, the most notable of which is trading for Patrick Beverley in exchange for Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson. Other than this, most of the Lakers' off-season moves were negligible, which did little to help them fix the main issue hurting them last season: three-point shooting.
After the first three games of the season, it's apparent that for the Lakers, it's a "new year, filled with the same problems," meaning they still can't shoot the three-ball. After averaging a meager 34-35 percent as a team from three last season, you would think this would motivate off-season acquisitions specialized in shooting, but they failed to do this and paid for it dearly. Three games in, the Lakers barely average 21 percent from behind the arc.
via Sports Illustrated
Key Takeaways of the first Three games
After these first three games, the biggest surprise for the Lakers has to be the performance of none other than Lonnie Walker IV. They acquired him rather inexpensively in the off-season as he was an unrestricted free agent, and since suiting up in the purple and gold, he has shown up and shown out.
Lonnie is averaging about 15 points per game while shooting 43 percent from the field for the Lakers. Additionally, he posted an excellent 26 points, along with two steals, three assists, and three rebounds, while shooting 42% from the field in their game against the Clippers.
Another huge takeaway to mention is the defense and inside scoring of the Los Angeles Lakers. While they may be struggling to knock down a shot from behind the line, this team is gritty, and they have no problem getting rough down low. They lead the league in defensive rating, but they still can't seem to translate this into a winning attitude. As we advance further into the season, the Lakers may need to begin looking for other options and consider trades.
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Accepting Reality
For Lakers fans, the reality might be slowly setting in that Bron and AD might not be able to turn this team around.
After the last season's disappointment, you'd hope the Lakers would come out playing with a vengeance, ready to make up for the embarrassing display put on last year. But they have failed to do so, and now the time may finally be on us for trades to happen to try and shake things up. It's clear that shooting is the biggest problem, and currently, this team is as far as you can get from being good a shooting.
Something needs to change. Whether that comes back to trading away Russell Westbrook is another story. Bleacher Report came out with news of the Lakers and Jazz revisiting trade talks around Westbrook, Mike Conley, and Jordan Clarkson, but nothing has come of this development yet. Regardless, the Lakers need to look towards new options and see who they could trade to try and add more three-point shooting on the roster.
