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L.A. Notes: 3-Point Shooting, LeBron, Harrell, Rivers

August 19th, 2020 at 12:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers‘ loss in their playoff opener is raising concerns that the team may not be built for the postseason, writes Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The top seed in the West got off to a rocky start Tuesday night as a late lead slipped away against the Trail Blazers.

The starkest difference between the teams was 3-point shooting, as Portland hit 38.2% of its attempts beyond the arc while the Lakers made a miserable 15.6%. Despite having a short-handed backcourt due to the absence of Avery Bradley and an injury to Rajon Rondo, coach Frank Vogel barely used two additions who were brought to the team to provide long-distance shooting. Dion Waiters played just one minute last night, and J.R. Smith wasn’t used at all.

“We’re getting good looks. It’s just a matter of taking our time and knocking them down,” Anthony Davis said after the loss. “That’s been our whole little M.O. in the restart, not being able to consistently knock down the three-ball. … We have to make sure that when the ball comes to us, we take our time and knock down the shot. That’s the only way we’re going to clear that paint.”

There’s more on the two L.A. teams:

  • LeBron James had a historic night with 23 points, 17 rebounds and 16 assists, but he didn’t take over the game the way “Playoff LeBron” normally would, observes Joe Vardon of The Athletic, who theorizes that James might be a different player without crowd reactions. “Like I continue to say, this is different from the aspect of we’re in the bubble with no fans,” James said. “But as far as me being locked in on the game plan, that doesn’t change. Not one bit. Me going out and making plays, playing at a high level, trying to help our team win — that was the same.”
  • Clippers center Montrezl Harrell talks about his grief over his grandmother’s recent death with Mark Medina of USA Today. Harrell left the Disney World campus July 17 and wound up missing all the team’s scrimmages and its eight seeding games. He returned and completed a seven-day quarantine in time for Monday’s playoff opener. “I kind of reflected back after the game once I got to my room,” Harrell said. “That’s when I did the majority of my reflecting. More emotions came out then. It’s just different having somebody here who just means everything in the world to you, and you (were) constantly in communication with them every other day.”
  • Coach Doc Rivers reacted to an accusation from Mavericks center Kristaps Porzingis that the Clippers intentionally provoke their opponents, Medina writes in a separate piece. Porzingis was ejected from Game 1 for getting involved in a dispute between Luka Doncic and Marcus Morris. “We have some guys who are agitators. I think that’s good,” Rivers said. “But I can guarantee you that wasn’t on our game-plan list. That’s just ridiculous.”
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Western Notes: Collins, Dort, DeRozan, James

August 17th, 2020 at 8:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Trail Blazers will be down a starter for Game 1 of their first-round series against the top-seeded Lakers on Tuesday. Power forward Zach Collins will sit out due to left ankle inflammation, Marc J. Spears of ESPN tweets. Wenyen Gabriel will start in Collins’ place.

Collins, who missed most of the season after undergoing left shoulder surgery, appeared in all eight of the seeding games for the Trail Blazers. He averaged 6.3 PPG and 7.1 RPG in those outings.

We have more from around the Western Conference:

  • Thunder wing Luguentz Dort is unlikely to play in their opener against Houston on Tuesday due to a knee sprain, Royce Young of ESPN tweets. However, head coach Billy Donovan said Dort is progressing well, which suggests the rookie will play in the series. Dort was injured against Miami on Wednesday. He could be a key defensive factor against the small-ball Rockets.
  • DeMar DeRozan and the Spurs have some tough decisions to make regarding his future, as Bobby Marks of ESPN notes. DeRozan must decide by October 13 whether to exercise his $27.7MM option for next season. That won’t necessarily mean DeRozan will remain with the club. He could get traded, whether or not he opts it. The club could also work out an extension with DeRozan or decide during next season whether to extend or trade him if he opts in.
  • Lakers superstar LeBron James believes this will be his most difficult playoff run, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. James sees a number of challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic and the league being forced to play in a neutral venue. “As far as me locking in on an opponent and individuals, that hasn’t changed. What’s different is this is the environment, not home,” he said. “Not with my family, not in my own bed, I’m not in our own practice facility. I’m not preparing to be at Staples [Center] tomorrow with our fans. I’m not with a lot of things that’s essential to my everyday regimen.”
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Lakers Notes: Rotation, McGee, LeBron, Rondo

August 9th, 2020 at 1:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers have wrapped up the top seed in the West, but they haven’t looked like the team they were before the break, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Saturday’s loss to the Pacers dropped L.A. to 2-4 in Orlando, and the problems go beyond a mediocre record.

Avery Bradley opted out of the restart, leaving a huge hole in the perimeter defense, and Rajon Rondo was lost to thumb surgery. Newcomers J.R. Smith and Dion Waiters were both left on the bench against Indiana, while Danny Green sat out the game with a sore hip. That meant Alex Caruso started, with Jared Dudley, Quinn Cook and rookie Talen Horton-Tucker seeing back-up minutes.

“This is a different situation than any situation I’ve been in, so it’s kind of hard to say, ‘OK, playoffs are right around the corner, this is where we’re gonna be.’ We’re literally in a bubble. It’s kind of hard to explain,” LeBron James said after the game. “Obviously you want to be playing great basketball going into the playoffs. It’s exactly what you should be doing and what you want to do.”

There’s more on the Lakers:

  • Center JaVale McGee was back on the court Saturday after being benched in Thursday’s loss, but he turned in another sub-par performance with five points and four rebounds in 13 minutes, observes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. McGee hasn’t been the same since the hiatus, and the starting lineup hasn’t been effective in the five games he has played in Orlando. “That lineup has struggled, but I don’t feel like JaVale has been off his game,” said coach Frank Vogel. “In fact, when we had our intrasquad scrimmages before scrimmages against other teams, we were keeping stats on all our scrimmages and he was shooting 85 percent in those games. So I’m not worried about his play at all.”
  • James was one of the first players to speak out against the idea of playing in empty arenas when the idea was being considered in March, but he’s adapting to the atmosphere at Walt Disney World, notes Mark Medina of USA Today. James calls it a “very weird dynamic” and said he hasn’t played without fans since before high school. “I definitely love playing in front of the fans. The fans are what make the game,” he said. “Without the fans, I wouldn’t be who I am today. To all the fans out there that come watch me play, I miss you guys and hopefully someday I can get back to that interaction.”
  • The Lakers are hopeful that Rondo can rejoin the team sometime in the first round of the playoffs, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
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NBA Announces Finalists For 2019/20 Awards

August 8th, 2020 at 12:01pm CST by marksuleymanov

The NBA has announced the finalists for several awards as the seeding games on the Orlando campus move forward and the postseason nears. It was announced in July that all awards for the 2019/20 season would be based on games up until March 11, when the coronavirus pandemic shuttered play. Media members made their votes before the seeding games began on July 30.

NBA Most Valuable Player Finalists:

NBA Defensive Player of the Year:

NBA Rookie of the Year:

NBA Most Improved Player:

NBA Sixth Man of the Year:

NBA Coach of the Year:

  • Mike Budenholzer (Bucks)
  • Billy Donovan (Thunder)
  • Nick Nurse (Raptors)

The winners for the awards will be announced during the NBA playoffs after the seeding games period concludes on August 14.

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LeBron To Sit On Thursday; Westbrook Also Unlikely To Play

August 6th, 2020 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Lakers star LeBron James will sit out Thursday night’s game against the Rockets due to soreness in his groin, the team announced in this afternoon’s injury report (Twitter link via Bill Oram of The Athletic).

James’ groin ailment probably isn’t anything for Lakers fans to worry about. With the No. 1 spot in the Western Conference locked up, the team has little reason to ride its star players hard before the postseason begins on August 17. The Lakers were also in action on Wednesday, so LeBron will be sitting the second half of the back-to-back set.

Meanwhile, the Rockets may be without one of their stars on Thursday night as well. Russell Westbrook is listed as questionable due to a right quad contusion, with a source telling Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link) that the All-Star guard will likely sit out vs. the Lakers.

There’s no indication that Westbrook’s injury is serious either, though these last few seeding games are a little more important for Houston than they are for Los Angeles. The Rockets are currently the No. 6 seed in the West, but they’re tied with the fifth-seeded Thunder and a half-game behind the No. 4 Jazz.

The Rockets will have two days off before facing Sacramento on Sunday, so we’ll see if Westbrook is ready to roll by that point.

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Pacific Notes: Kings, Len, LeBron, Williams, Warriors

July 30th, 2020 at 11:37am CST by Luke Adams

The Kings, who previously furloughed some employees starting on June 1, have now laid off some staffers as well, according to Sean Cunningham of ABC10 Sacramento (Twitter links). According to Cunningham, no members of the Kings’ basketball operations department were part of this week’s layoffs.

Cunningham estimates that about 100 employees within the organization were impacted by the earlier furloughs. And based on a statement from John Rinehart, the Kings’ president of business operations, it sounds like a portion of those workers have now been laid off.

“As part of the organization’s ongoing evolution of efforts to align with the changes in our business, we have made the difficult decision to transition a portion of previously furloughed full-time roles to a reduction in workforce effective July 31 and extend the furlough period for the remaining segment of previously furloughed employees to tentatively November 1 due to continued uncertainty surrounding the resumption of live events at Golden 1 Center resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Rinehart said, per Cunningham.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

  • Kings center Alex Len, who reported to the NBA campus late after a bout with COVID-19, will likely miss the team’s first summer game on Friday, head coach Luke Walton said today (Twitter link via James Ham of NBC Sports California). However, it shouldn’t be too much longer before Len is ready to go.
  • Within an ESPN.com piece about the Lakers‘ unusual 2019/20 season, Dave McMenamin suggests that LeBron James wasn’t thrilled about Lakers players being asked last fall to address the NBA/China controversy before commissioner Adam Silver or Rockets GM Daryl Morey did. Morey’s tweet supporting Hong Kong protestors instigated that dispute between the league and its Chinese partners.
  • Lou Williams‘ violation of the NBA’s protocols means he’s serving a 10-day quarantine and missing at least two seeding games, but his Clippers teammates and head coach Doc Rivers have Williams’ back, as Mark Medina of USA Today writes. “Lou’s one of the most-liked guys in the whole organization and is always trying to get everyone together on the road,” center Ivica Zubac said. “Lou is a true leader. The fact that everyone is coming to the defense of him speaks everything about him.”
  • Anthony Slater of The Athletic takes a deep dive into James Wiseman‘s potential fit with the Warriors, pointing out that if Golden State does end up using its top-five pick this fall, it will represent an opportunity to secure a long-term building block — not just a role player who can fit in with the current core.
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Western Notes: Clippers, Lakers, House, Blazers

July 29th, 2020 at 9:25pm CST by Jovan Alford

The Lakers and Clippers will play in the second game of Thursday’s “re-opening” night. However, both teams could be missing key players.

According to Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell are listed as out on the status report, while Patrick Beverley is considered questionable for the Clippers (Twitter link). For the Lakers, Anthony Davis is listed as questionable, while LeBron James, Kyle Kuzma, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are listed as probable and should play.

With Williams in quarantine for 10 days, the Clippers are hoping Beverley, who just returned to the NBA’s Walt Disney Campus after being away for a personal matter, can step in.

Davis practiced on Wednesday with goggles on after being poked in the eye last week against the Magic. All signs point to the Lakers forward playing tomorrow night.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

  • Clippers head coach Doc Rivers spoke at length about how deep his team’s roster is despite missing multiple players, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “Well, a deep roster is built for that,” Rivers said. “And we’ve done that. Now, when you have five and six guys out at one time, that’s asking too much on any roster. By the time the [seeding] games start, we won’t have that many out, but we’ll have maybe two to three key guys out, and that’s asking a lot.” As previously noted, Los Angeles will be without Williams and Harrell on Thursday night. But Kawhi Leonard echoes the same sentiment of his head coach about the depth of the roster.“I knew that we had a pretty deep squad,” he said. “I knew how talented we could be. It’s about executing now.”
  • With Eric Gordon being sidelined for two weeks with an ankle injury, Danuel House will be inserted into the Rockets’ starting lineup, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). This season, House has started in 47 games for Houston, while averaging 10.2 PPG and 4.2 RPG. He is also shooting 36.3 percent from three-point range.
  • Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts told reporters this week that he expects to have a full team available for Friday’s seeding game against the Grizzlies, per Jason Quick of The Athletic (Twitter link). Portland currently trails Memphis by 3.5 games for the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
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J.R. Smith Talks Changes In LeBron James

July 18th, 2020 at 12:15pm CST by marksuleymanov

As the Lakers prepare to contend for a title at the NBA campus in Orlando, J.R. Smith will try to help L.A. after joining the team in early July. Although Smith has not played in over a year, he brings championship experience and an ability to score.

Specifically, Smith’s title pedigree comes from his time as a teammate with LeBron James in Cleveland when the organization captured its first title in 2016. Smith played a crucial role in guiding the Cavaliers to a championship behind James and now, reunited with a different team, the former Sixth Man of the Year sees a change in his former and current teammate.

“Before, he’s always been so focused on his drive and winning and stuff like that, but I feel like that pressure is off his shoulders, and he can just be him,” Smith said, per Spectrum’s Mike Trudell (Twitter link). “He don’t have to try to orchestrate the offense or the defense or what somebody did wrong, he can let the coaches do their job, and I think that’s a true testament to him growing.”

Smith, 34, joins the Lakers in a much different role than the last time he was teammates with James, but with the same goal — winning a championship. The Lakers will need to rely on steady play from their bench and the usual strong performance from James. Smith views an older, more experienced LeBron as more than capable of delegating to others on the team.

“I’ve watched interviews when people try to say he’s not coachable because he knows so much about the game, but he’s probably the most coachable person out there just because he gives you his side or his opinion and he might be right,” Smith said. “More than anything I just think he’s so much more patient in his delivery and how he goes about the process of the game.”

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L.A. Notes: Noah, Williams, Leonard, LeBron

July 11th, 2020 at 6:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Joakim Noah, who recently signed with the Clippers for the rest of the season, might have joined the team earlier if not for an accident in September, writes Garrett Chorpenning of Sports Illustrated. Noah had a workout scheduled, but was forced to cancel after getting hurt.

“In September, I had a freak accident and cut my Achilles, and you know, I told myself that that’s just not how I wanted to end my career,” Noah told reporters today. “So you know, the day after the surgery, I was in the gym working out with the hope of making this team. I knew that if I didn’t keep training and if I got a call from the Clippers and I wasn’t ready, I knew I would have regrets for the rest of my life. … Being in a position to win a championship, it’s not something that I take for granted.”

The 35-year-old center finally joined the team on a 10-day contract in March, just two days before the hiatus began. Late last month, he signed a deal that covers the remainder of this season and is non-guaranteed for 2020/21.

There’s more regarding the L.A. teams:

  • Clippers guard Lou Williams was “50-50” about coming to Orlando, but respected the results of a team vote, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “We decided our decision was going to be everybody or nobody,” Williams said. “… We decided to come as a group. I’m part of the group. I have a lot of thoughts, ideas I felt strongly about personally, but I represent a group.”
  • After not traveling with the Clippers to Orlando, Kawhi Leonard joined the team last night, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. Coach Doc Rivers said he hasn’t decided what to do with Leonard’s minutes yet, but having a fully healthy team will make it easier to rest him, tweets Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
  • Lakers star LeBron James will wear his name on the back of his jersey rather than one of the league-approved messages regarding social justice, according to ESPN. James said the available options “didn’t seriously resonate with my mission, with my goal.” He adds that he never feared that the NBA wouldn’t finish its season. “No, never crossed my mind that we did not need to play this beautiful game of basketball that brings so many people together,” James said. “That brings happiness. That brings joy to the households of so many families.”
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Lakers Notes: LeBron, Smith, Bradley, Rondo

July 9th, 2020 at 11:03am CST by Arthur Hill

The stakes are high for LeBron James as the NBA season moves closer to restarting, writes Scott Cacciola of The New York Times. At age 35 and with a fourth championship possibly in reach, the Lakers star will have a chance to significantly add to his legacy.

Teammates say James maintained his leadership role through the nearly four-month hiatus, offering advice on group chats regarding topics such as gyms that were available for workouts and opportunities to speak out about social justice. He also stayed in top physical condition in preparation for a playoff run.

“He’s in the gym early, he’s leaving late and he’s the last guy working — and probably working the longest and the hardest,” Danny Green said. “He hasn’t changed at all, man.”

There’s more Lakers news to pass along:

  • Veteran guard J.R. Smith, who signed with the Lakers last week, said the coaching staff has given him a clearly defined role, Cacciola adds in the same piece. Smith was instructed to “shoot the ball at a high level” and concentrate on defense, leaving the playmaking duties to others. “It’s fortunate,” he said, “because I’ve never been the guy who was really trying to set up guys.”
  • Even though Avery Bradley opted out of the restart, he will receive a championship ring if the Lakers win the title, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. Bradley, the only player from a serious title contender to pass on playing in Orlando, made the decision because of health concerns involving his six-year-old son. “Will I accept the ring? I’m neither here nor there about it,” he said. “I am 10 years in this league. The physical possession of a ring doesn’t make me feel like more or less of a person. I play basketball strictly for enjoyment and to add to the support of my family. Supporting them is exactly what I’m doing right now.”
  • Rajon Rondo is sporting an impressive physique in a Lakers practice video that has been circulating on social media, notes Austin Boyd of Heavy. The 34-year-old guard is notably leaner and stronger than when the season was suspended in March.
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