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Lakers Notes: Westbrook, Davis, Ham, LeBron

October 29th, 2022 at 5:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers were encouraged by Russell Westbrook‘s performance off the bench Friday night, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. It’s a role that new head coach Darvin Ham talked to Westbrook about during the offseason, and he decided to make the move after the team’s sluggish start.

Westbrook turned in his best game of the season, delivering 18 points, eight rebounds and three assists in 33 minutes. However, his shooting woes continued as he hit just 6-of-17 from the field and 5-of-10 from the foul line and he turned the ball over five times.

“From Day 1, I mentioned I’m the guy that’s willing to do whatever for the team,” said Westbrook, who hadn’t been used as a reserve since his rookie season. “I’ll sacrifice whatever it is that needs to be sacrificed — parts of my game that I’ve done for years to accommodate whatever it is that the coach needs me to do, and I’ll continue to do that.”

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Anthony Davis sat out his first game of the season Friday due to lower back tightness, McMenamin adds. While it doesn’t sound like a serious injury, there are always concerns with any physical ailment involving Davis, who has played just 40 and 36 games the past two seasons. “He has to do what’s best for his body,” LeBron James said. “He has to do what’s best for his body and his mind. If his mind is gone, then everything else will fall to the wayside. So he has to trust himself. Yes, he wants to play every game. Yes, he wants to be out there for our team. But he’s had a lot of bumps and bruises over the last few years, so he has to trust himself, trust his staff and not put his body in harm’s way.”
After L.A. dropped to 0-5, Ham joked with reporters about the team’s lack of offense, per Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. Asked if Lonnie Walker can become the “third scorer” in the starting lineup, Ham responded, “I mean, we welcome any and all scorers, whether they’re third, fourth, fifth, sixth or seventh. If you can score, we’ll work you out tomorrow.”
The Lakers ended Friday’s game with James at center, trying to create a mismatch with Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert, Goon notes. James indicated that he doesn’t expect to see much time in the middle, explaining that Ham is experimenting with different combinations. “We’re just trying to find what works right now, to be honest,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who is on the floor. We’re just trying to find what works, who can give us the best chance to win a ballgame.”

Lakers’ Anthony Davis Out Friday With Back Tightness

October 28th, 2022 at 5:34pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers big man Anthony Davis will miss Friday’s game at Minnesota with lower back tightness, the team announced (Twitter link via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin).

Davis was considered a game-time decision leading up to the contest. He was able to participate in the team’s Friday shootaround, but he has now been ruled out.

According to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link), Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said back issues are “tricky” because Davis felt fine Friday morning, but Ham implied he may have slept on it wrong and tweaked it. However, Ham is hopeful that it will be a one-game absence.

“We feel good about him being available the next game,” Ham said. The Lakers’ next game is Sunday vs. Denver, followed by Wednesday vs. New Orleans.

As Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times tweets, the Lakers also announced that Russell Westbrook (left hamstring) and LeBron James (left foot soreness) are available for Friday’s game against the Wolves.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported earlier today that Ham planned to bring Westbrook off the bench against Minnesota, but that was contingent upon Davis playing. However, Wojnarowski tweets that the Lakers still plan to transition Westbrook to a reserve play-making role — it just might be temporarily postponed due to Davis’ absence.

For his part, Ham said he was undecided on whether Westbrook would start tonight, per Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group (via Twitter).

Davis, an eight-time All-Star, has struggled with various injuries throughout his career, but particularly the past two seasons. From 2020-22, Davis only appeared in 76 of a possible 154 games.

The Lakers are still looking for their first win of the season, and now they’ll be without the former No. 1 overall pick for at least one game. Davis is averaging 24.0 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.8 steals and 2.3 blocks on .527/.182/.762 shooting through four games (35.0 minutes per contest).

Lakers Expected To Bring Russell Westbrook Off Bench

October 28th, 2022 at 1:40pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers are expected to bring Russell Westbrook off the bench when he returns to action following a hamstring-related absence, allowing him to be the primary play-maker for the team’s second unit, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

Westbrook, who missed Wednesday’s game in Denver, was originally listed as questionable for Friday’s contest in Minnesota, but has since been upgraded to probable, tweets Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group.

Anthony Davis continues to be listed as questionable for Friday due to low back tightness and is considered a game-time decision. If Davis misses the game, that could keep Westbrook in the starting lineup, Wojnarowski notes (via Twitter).

However, Davis did participate in the Lakers’ Friday shootaround. According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link), the team used a starting five of Davis, LeBron James, Patrick Beverley, Lonnie Walker, and Damian Jones during that shootaround.

The Lakers attempted to bring Westbrook off the bench in their preseason finale two weeks ago, but the experiment lasted just five minutes before he left the game due to a hamstring injury. The former MVP later said that he thought not being in the starting lineup was a factor in his injury, since he didn’t have the same pregame routine he has grown accustomed to.

Still, it sounds like the Lakers and head coach Darvin Ham still believe the idea of Westbrook joining the second unit has merit. Even if it doesn’t happen on Friday, it appears L.A. will try it again sooner or later — if it works, the team intends to stick with it for the foreseeable future, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Lakers Notes: Davis, Reaves, Westbrook, Trade Talks

October 26th, 2022 at 5:12pm CST by Arthur Hill

Anthony Davis admits there’s a “sense of urgency” surrounding the Lakers after their 0-3 start, but he adds that it’s important not to overreact to the first week of the season, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. L.A. was hoping for some early wins to change the narrative about the team after missing the playoffs last season. But the Lakers have played a strong schedule so far — losing to the Warriors, Clippers and Trail Blazers — and are facing a tough two-game road trip against the Nuggets and Timberwolves.

“You don’t want to dig yourself too big of a hole,” Davis said. “But we’ve got to stay even-keeled. We can’t get rattled or flustered and things like that. Just like if we win 12 in a row. We don’t want to get too high.”

Offense is the main issue in L.A. as the Lakers are last in the league in three-point shooting at 21.2% and Davis called their shot selection late in the Portland loss “very poor.” However, there has been improvement on defense as the team leads the league with 11.3 steals per game and ranks third in points per possession.

“We’re continuously learning each other,” Davis said. “The good thing about it is we’re playing defense, ranked third in the league in defense. In all the statistical categories, we’re top-10. We just got to keep pushing. Keep our head down and move forward with the mindset we’re going into Denver (tonight) to get a win.”

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Embattled guard Russell Westbrook is expected to miss tonight’s game with a hamstring injury and Austin Reaves will take his place in the starting lineup in a move that may become permanent, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (video link). Reaves saw time with the starting unit during the preseason, and his future in that role may depend on how the team looks against the Nuggets. Sources tell Charania that coach Darvin Ham has been working with Westbrook to figure out the best way to utilize him going forward. Westbrook hopes to be able to return Friday, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
In an appearance on ESPN’s “Get Up,” Woj stated that the Lakers haven’t discussed deals with the Pacers or Jazz – viewed as perhaps their two most likely trade partners – since the season began (video link). He adds that the only trades currently available are the ones L.A. refused to do during the offseason.
The Lakers have put themselves in an impossible situation by holding onto Westbrook for a second season, contends Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. He points out that not only is Westbrook in decline, but he doesn’t have chemistry with Davis and LeBron James, as the trio is just 11-13 in the 24 games they have all played together.

Lakers Notes: Brown, Ham, Westbrook, AD, LeBron

October 23rd, 2022 at 3:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers free agent addition Troy Brown was a full participant in Saturday’s practice and is set to make his season debut on Sunday against Portland, according to Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group.

The team has been vague regarding Brown’s back issue, but Brown revealed that it’s a pretty serious one — he’s been dealing with a herniated disc, the same injury that caused Brook Lopez and Ben Simmons to undergo surgery within the last year. Goon writes that the Lakers have been cautious not to overextend Brown, who had been limited to non-contact work for weeks until recently.

Head coach Darvin Ham lavished praise on what Brown might provide to the team.

“Just his size, his athleticism, his length, his ability to shoot,” Ham said, per Goon. “And he’s just a young player that’s got NBA games under his belt already that we’re super excited about. I think just his attention to detail, making sure he’s in the right space, right place within the offense, and defensively him really wanting to help, and I think he will.”

At 6’6″ and 215 pounds, Brown is one of the few true wings on the Lakers’ roster, and at 23 years old, he could have some untapped upside. Still, he only averaged 4.3 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 66 games (16 MPG) for the Bulls last season, so it would be pretty surprising if he had a major impact on his new team after dealing with a back injury.

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Ham continues to publicly support Russell Westbrook despite his shooting struggles, Goon relays in the same article. Westbrook was 0-of-11 from the field against the Clippers, though he did compete hard on defense, which pleased Ham. “That’s what I asked of him and that’s what I preached this summer and everybody looked at me like I was crazy,” Ham said. “But Russ is still an elite athlete, and those are the things I’m talking about when I’m saying sacrifice. Not to take anything away, necessarily, but for him to diversify his game. And he’s been trying to do that.”
Anthony Davis, who took a hard fall in the loss to the Clippers on Thursday, had been listed as probable for Sunday’s game, which typically means the player will wind up playing, and that is indeed the case. Ham confirmed the news to reporters (Twitter link via Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times).
Refusing to improve the roster around LeBron James is squandering what’s left of the superstar’s prime and “that’s negligence” from the front office, argues Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. Zillgitt says that the lack of shooting on the Lakers’ roster is particularly perplexing given how successful James has been when surrounded by shooters throughout his career. For what it’s worth, the Lakers currently trail the Blazers 55-48 at halftime and are 1-of-16 from three-point range.

Lakers Notes: Westbrook, Three-Point Shooting, Davis

October 19th, 2022 at 9:38am CST by Luke Adams

Lakers guard Russell Westbrook was back in the starting lineup for the team’s regular season opener on Tuesday after playing a reserve role in last Friday’s preseason finale and leaving after just five minutes of action due to a hamstring strain. Asked on Tuesday whether coming off the bench may have been a factor in injuring his hamstring, Westbrook didn’t hesitate to draw a link between the two.

“Absolutely. I’ve been doing the same thing for 14 years straight,” Westbrook said, per Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. “Honestly, I didn’t know what to do pregame, I was trying to stay warm and loose.

“I felt something, didn’t know what it was. Wasn’t gonna risk it in a preseason game. But definitely wasn’t something I was used to. Wasn’t warm enough. It was something I wasn’t accustomed to.”

Westbrook has started over 1,000 regular season games since last coming off the bench as a rookie in 2008. While he has spoken publicly about embracing whatever role new head coach Darvin Ham asks him to play, it sounds like he’s still not enthusiastic about the idea of not being part of the starting five.

It’s possible the concept of bringing Westbrook off the bench is one the Lakers will revisit in the coming days, weeks, or months following the aborted experiment last Friday. But Ham spoke before Tuesday’s game about wanting to establish a consistent starting lineup, as ESPN’s Dave McMenamin relays.

“We don’t want to be one of those teams,” he said, “where teams are swaying according to who their opponent is starting.”

Here’s more on the Lakers, who dropped their first game of the regular season on Tuesday in Golden State:

The Lakers’ Big Three of Westbrook, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis combined for 77 points on Tuesday, but they made just 4-of-16 three-pointers, and the rest of the team was no better from distance. After facing some criticism for not prioritizing outside shooting in free agency, the Lakers made just 10-of-40 threes on the night. “I think we got great looks, but it also could be teams giving us great looks,” James said, according to Goodwill. “To be completely honest, we’re not a team that’s constructed of great shooting. Truth of matter is not like you know, we (have) a lot of lasers on our team. We’re not sitting here with a bunch of 40-plus (percent) career 3-point shooting guys.”
The 2022/23 season represents a fork in the road for Davis, contends Jovan Buha of The Athletic. As Buha outlines, there’s a general consensus within the organization that Davis’ success this season will determine the Lakers’ success, so if he can stay healthy and have a big year, he can re-establish himself as one of the game’s top players after a couple disappointing, injury-plagued seasons.
In case you missed it, two projected Lakers rotation players – Dennis Schröder and Thomas Bryant – each underwent thumb surgery and will miss the first few weeks of the season.

Western Notes: Lakers, Nuggets, Rockets, Potter, Liddell, Spurs

October 17th, 2022 at 12:57pm CST by Luke Adams

Although he didn’t play in the Lakers‘ preseason finale on Friday due to lower back soreness, Anthony Davis will have “no restrictions, whatsoever” when the team’s regular season tips off on Tuesday in Golden State, head coach Darvin Ham said (link via Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times).

Russell Westbrook, who sustained a left hamstring injury in Friday’s game, could “definitely” be available for the opener, according to Ham, but reserve point guard Dennis Schröder likely won’t be, as Turner writes.

Ham said that Schröder’s thumb ligament injury was still being evaluated as of Sunday, and while he’s still considered day-to-day, the ailment may take a little time to heal, tweets Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group.

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Nikola Jokic (wrist) and Jamal Murray (hamstring) are both expected to be available for the Nuggets‘ regular season opener on Wednesday in Utah, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Barring an unexpected setback, it will be the first time Denver’s two stars have shared the court in a regular season game since April 2021.
The Rockets will likely have a handful of players on the injury report to start the season, but head coach Stephen Silas said on Sunday that he’s hopeful rookie Jabari Smith (ankle) will be available for the team’s opener, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Silas added that Garrison Mathews (illness) and Daishen Nix (back) are “close” to being ready too. Jae’Sean Tate (ankle) is the least likely of the group to be available for the opener, Feigen writes.
The two-way contracts signed in recent days by Jazz center Micah Potter and Pelicans forward E.J. Liddell both cover two years, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. As our tracker shows, those are the fifth and sixth two-way deals signed this offseason that are for two years instead of one.
Noting that the Spurs have had “so many guys over the years” develop their games in the G League, head coach Gregg Popovich said two-way players Dominick Barlow and Jordan Hall will likely spend most of their time in Austin this season, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “He’ll spend some time in the G League and play lots of minutes,” Popovich said, specifically addressing Barlow’s situation. “If he was with us right now, he’s not going to get on the court that much, which doesn’t help him develop.”

L.A. Notes: Walker, Lakers, Davis, Clippers, Batum

October 13th, 2022 at 8:05am CST by Luke Adams

Lakers swingman Lonnie Walker, who earned a second consecutive start on Wednesday, sustained a “mild” left ankle sprain in the third quarter, per head coach Darvin Ham. Walker will be reevaluated on Thursday, but he’s not experiencing any swelling or overt pain, a source tells Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link).

The Lakers, having started Walker and Patrick Beverley on Wednesday alongside LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook, continue to search for the right starting lineup fit as the preseason winds down, writes Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times.

“We get an opportunity to throw some stuff at the wall and see what sticks,” Ham said prior to the game. “We already know our three main guys — Russ, Bron, AD. Those guys as well are getting used to playing with one another. That was very limited last year. So we look at it as an opportunity to just shake the rug and just shake things up and see what makes sense once it all starts to come together.”

The Lakers will play one more preseason game on Friday before next Tuesday’s regular season opener.

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Anthony Davis still prefers to play power forward, but is willing to start and finish games at center if that’s what the Lakers and Ham ask of him. “I trust Coach’s decision,” Davis said on Wednesday (Twitter link via McMenamin). “I mean, I’m pretty sure he heard AD wants to play the four, so he knows where I stand, but at the end of the day, I want to win, so if that’s me playing the five, that’s what it’s got to be.“
Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said he thought going into Wednesday’s game that he knew who would start at point guard, but he’s less certain about that spot after being displeased with how the team opened the game (Twitter link via Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN). Starting point guard Reggie Jackson had just one point in 12 minutes, while John Wall had eight points and four assists in 10 minutes off the bench.
In an interview on the French television channel Canal+ (video link), Clippers forward Nicolas Batum spoke about the mental health challenges he has faced during his NBA career, as Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops relays. Batum, whose father died of an aneurysm at age 31, was diagnosed with a heart issue before he entered the NBA and worried about his own health and family. “I was convinced the same would happen to me and that I was going to leave my family,” he said. “I asked my wife to not come to the games because I did want to see them in the stands.”

Lakers Notes: Schröder, Davis, Wembanyama

October 10th, 2022 at 9:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Dennis Schröder claims he never declined a four-year, $80MM offer from the Lakers during his first stint with the club, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times.

“There never was a contract, never rejected anything,” said Schröder, who signed a one-year, $2.64MM contract last month. “I don’t know who brought it up, but that’s the media, you know? But at the end of the day, no contract and I’m just happy to be here. Like you said, unfinished business and we just got to take care of the stuff and win a chip [championship]. That’s, I think, the goal, and other than that, with the contract, that’s not true. “

As Dave McMenamin of ESPN notes, it’s likely a case of semantics. When L.A. broached a conversation about an extension in February 2021, Schröder’s reps said they would rather wait until the offseason to discuss a contract. In other words, the Lakers were presumably willing to put a lucrative extension offer on the table, but may not have been given the chance to formally do so.

Schröder, who wound up signing a one-year, $5.9MM deal with Boston in 2021, hopes he’ll get another contract offer from the Lakers.

“Of course, it would be great to sign a big deal and a longer-term deal, and that’s my goal still,” he said. “But the end of the day, we are here now and I’m going to do everything I can right now to just help my teammates win ballgames.”

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Schröder practiced for the first time on Monday and will see a few minutes of action in Wednesday’s preseason game against Minnesota. He looks forward to fighting for minutes with Patrick Beverley, Turner writes. “I’ve played against him a couple of times. I seen today already he’s a little different, and I mean, I like it,” he said. “We all competitors, and we try to get after it.”
Will Anthony Davis start at power forward or center? New coach Darvin Ham said that Davis playing the ‘five’ spot is a real possibility, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register tweets. As Ham put it, it’s “definitely on the table.”
The stir caused by probable 2023 top pick Victor Wembanyama could benefit the Lakers, Goon opines. Non-contenders may be more willing to move quality veteran players. Salary matching with Russell Westbrook’s $47.1MM contract would still be a challenge but potential trade partners might be less demanding regarding Los Angeles’ 2027 and 2029 first-rounders.

Lakers Notes: Davis, James, Westbrook, Brown, Ryan

October 10th, 2022 at 7:42am CST by Luke Adams

With Anthony Davis, LeBron James, and Russell Westbrook sitting out at least two games apiece so far this preseason, the Lakers have yet to get an extended look at their three stars together. The trio was available in the first preseason contest last Monday, but Davis missed the next two before returning on Sunday, while James and Westbrook have rested for the last two games.

Injuries often prevented Davis, James, and Westbrook from sharing the court last season, but head coach Darvin Ham isn’t worried about his stars not getting enough time together before opening night. As Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times writes, Ham said that the team is sticking to its plan and that the rotations in the final two games of the preseason will look more like what we should expect in the regular season.

Davis, who was dealing with some lower back tightness last week, looked good in his return on Sunday vs. Golden State, pouring in 28 points in 21 minutes en route to a 124-121 win. As Woike observes, it was the Lakers’ first preseason victory since 2020.

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Within the same story, Woike notes that Troy Brown, signed as a free agent in July, is unlikely to be available for the start of the regular season due to a back injury. “He’s right on schedule with what he’s supposed to be doing,” Ham said. “When we do get him back…we’re excited about him. He was having a great summer before he hurt his back.”
Camp invitee Matt Ryan had a big game for the Lakers on Sunday, knocking down six three-pointers and scoring 20 points. “He may have gotten himself a job today,” Ham said after the game (Twitter link via Woike).
As Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report tweets, the Lakers have 12 players on standard guaranteed contracts, and Austin Reaves and Wenyen Gabriel look like safe bets to make the team on non-guaranteed deals. That would leave the 15th regular season roster spot available for Ryan, assuming L.A. is willing to increase its projected tax bill by carrying a 15th man to start the regular season.