It will just be beautiful.
The last time the Lakers started a worrying losing streak of four games was December 2019, in which they responded with nine games. Coincidentally, the winning streak started against the Portland Trail Blazers, who defeated them last night in one of their best defensive performances of the 2020-21 season.
The worry of going in was how the Lakers lost four straight, which came shortly after Anthony Davis’ Achilles injury. The Lakers dropped just 98 points against the Brooklyn Nets, who were defended and lost by 11. Two nights later, the Miami Heat struck a 96-94 style victory in the 1990s. This was followed by a loss of overtime to the Washington Wizards, who now won 6-out-7 for the first time in three seasons. And then the big one: a 114-89 donkey in the hands of the Utah Jazz, the NBA’s best team of the regular season (for now).
If last night was not a must-win for the Lakers, it was close, though that was not the only reason Davis was not expected to return for at least a few more weeks. The Lakers had to prove they could tread water without The Brow, and did so by keeping the NBA’s tenth highest offense to more than 20 points below their average. Getting Dennis Schröder back from COVID protocol has helped tremendously, but it mostly suggests that the Lakers – even without Davis – still have equipment they can call defensively that other NBA players still have to prove when it matters. .
The Lakers allowed Damian Lillard to walk down for 35 points, but he not only had to work tirelessly (24 attempts in the field goal) to reach a game, but the Lakers only allowed one other Trail Blazer to make more than 11 to collect. points: Gary Trent Jr., who passed 19 on just 8-of-20 shots (including 2-for-11 from three). Without Lillard’s 11-for-24, the Blazers shot 21-for-59 and were under pressure on what felt like every possession.
No matter, LeBron James finished the night with 28 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, but his 83rd defensive rating was a catalyst in the Laker victory, and he also scored four steals and three blocks. Offensively, the team did not get significant contributions from anyone outside of James, Schröder’s 22 points, and Montrezl Harrell’s 17-point, nine-rebound effort off the bench, but if they are locked up defensively, that’s all they need has. to lead the way.
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Perhaps even part of the motivation for the Lakers came before playing time when AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimović, who played for the LA Galaxy from 2018-19, criticized James for being essentially a political activist and ‘ a proponent of change in America. Ibrahimovic said In an interview with UEFA on Thursday for Discovery + that James is ‘phenomenal’, but does not have to do sports and politics at the same time.
“Do what you’re good at,” Ibrahimović said, as if advising. ‘Do the category you do. I play football because I am the best at playing football. I do not do politics. If I were a political politician, I would do politics. This is the first mistake people make when they become famous and they become in a certain status. Stay out there. Just do what you do best, because it does not look good. ”
Not only did James react with his actions, but he also addressed Ibrahimović after the match and said he would not keep quiet and dribble:
‘I will never keep quiet about things that are wrong. I preach about my people, and I preach about equality, social justice, racism, oppression of voters; things that are going on in our community. I will use my platform to continue to shed light on everything that is going on in this country and around the world. I can never just stick to sports because I understand how powerful this platform and my voice are. ‘
And because the internet will do it always find out, here is a clip of Ibrahimović acknowledging Muhammad Ali that he was a role model for what he did inside and outside of box. This is the typical revisionist history that people do with Ali (and Martin Luther King Jr. and Roberto Clemente, etc.), who in his time was not nearly as beloved as he becomes afterwards.