Game 49: Minnesota Timberwolves (23-24) @ Los Angeles Lakers (25-23)

[Pythagoras]

Unless Atlanta and Miami are being ridiculous and asking for 1st round picks for Prince/Ellington, those guys should be on the team before close of business tomorrow. I hope Magic has learned his lesson about undervaluing spot up 3 point shooters.

[Spanish_Laker]

Look at the bright side, every L takes us closer to Zion and the AD trade. I have already lost faith on this team (no 3pt shooting, no FT shooting, no offensive schemes, etc), in fact I feel bad for LeBron and his legendary hard carry quest he has to endure in the next two months.

[stan francisco]

I hope the “I don’t see it” fraction of the fan base saw what we look like on defense without Lonzo. And on offense. He’s key to all of what we do.

[kobe808lak]

I hate to say it but... tank??

Seriously, it's going to take a herculean effort by Lebron to get this team in the playoffs as probably the 8th seed only to get swept by the Warriors in round 1.. what's the point of that. Sit Lebron the rest of the way and get ready for next season. This roster construction was horribly done by Magic and Rob. What the hell were they thinking.

[Revived]

This team....I don’t know...

Couple good wins...couple horrendous losses. But all in all, where's the talent? Nothing particularly consistent, and nothing particularly eye-opening.

Just Lebron, and 'role-players'. I don't know who to blame, if there even is someone to blame.....but I'm just not sure we have much of value on this squad.

You mean like Lonzo and LeBron?

[Revived]

Look at the bright side, every L takes us closer to Zion and the AD trade. I have already lost faith on this team (no 3pt shooting, no FT shooting, no offensive schemes, etc), in fact I feel bad for LeBron and his legendary hard carry quest he has to endure in the next two months.

You shouldn’t. He’s not an idiot, he knew what he was getting into. LeBron came to LA for plenty more reasons than to win on the basketball court.

Living in one of the best cities in the world (over Cleveland LOL) for example is one of those reasons.

[dockingsched]

I hate to say it but... tank??

Seriously, it's going to take a herculean effort by Lebron to get this team in the playoffs as probably the 8th seed only to get swept by the Warriors in round 1.. what's the point of that. Sit Lebron the rest of the way and get ready for next season. This roster construction was horribly done by Magic and Rob. What the hell were they thinking.

Lakers are just 2 games back of the 6th seed lmao

[kobe808lak]

I hate to say it but... tank??

Seriously, it's going to take a herculean effort by Lebron to get this team in the playoffs as probably the 8th seed only to get swept by the Warriors in round 1.. what's the point of that. Sit Lebron the rest of the way and get ready for next season. This roster construction was horribly done by Magic and Rob. What the hell were they thinking.

Lakers are just 2 games back of the 6th seed lmao

True but if Lebron tweaks that groin injury again, we will plummet even further. This squad is trash without him.

[iamworthy]

I hate to say it but... tank??

Seriously, it's going to take a herculean effort by Lebron to get this team in the playoffs as probably the 8th seed only to get swept by the Warriors in round 1.. what's the point of that. Sit Lebron the rest of the way and get ready for next season. This roster construction was horribly done by Magic and Rob. What the hell were they thinking.

Lakers are just 2 games back of the 6th seed lmao

I think we are going to make the playoffs but ESPN playoff projection gives us a 14.6% chance. Apparently, per windy, one of the affects of having LeBron on your team is the schedule gets harder towards the end of the year. The NBA national coverage is on full tilt once the Superbowl is over meaning the NBA schedules LeBrons games vs really good teams until then. Rating wise it makes sense for the NBA to showcase LeBron in that fashion

[Landsberger]

It was a bad game. We don't seem to matchup well with Min either. Wiggins would be on the wall next to Jordan if we played them every game.

That said, we are not doomed here. We will be fine once we get Bron back.

The two things I took away from the game: Is Kuz OK? He looked either sick or hampered in some way. He wasn't in the mix physically and was given several short breaks. He wasn't moving well. Second, Rondo is pretty good. The guys is focused and has his game face on all the time. While he's had some dings against his interactions with other players in the past I'm not seeing it other than he's a competitor and a thinker at all times.

On to the next one and hopefully we get Bron back soon.

[bb22]

Should sit Bron the rest of the way, but no way he doesn't play. He wants to rack up that career point total and pass Jordan this season.
If Lebron goes playoff-mode they will make it into the post-season. And if some of the young guys have a strong showing, it raises their stock big time (similar to Gordon Hayward's playoff eruption a couple years ago).

[TylersLakers]

LeBron has to play soon. That's just the reality of this team.

[Landsberger]

It was a bad game. We don't seem to matchup well with Min either. Wiggins would be on the wall next to Jordan if we played them every game.

That said, we are not doomed here. We will be fine once we get Bron back.

The two things I took away from the game: Is Kuz OK? He looked either sick or hampered in some way. He wasn't in the mix physically and was given several short breaks. He wasn't moving well. Second, Rondo is pretty good. The guys is focused and has his game face on all the time. While he's had some dings against his interactions with other players in the past I'm not seeing it other than he's a competitor and a thinker at all times.

On to the next one and hopefully we get Bron back soon.

It's official.... Kuz injured his hip against Houston in the second quarter and has been dealing with a "strained" hip since then. The unsettling part is that he says it's getting worse.

Looking at what he's logged since then he's showing the effects and can't shoot outside the paint. He wants to compete but he may need to shut it down for a game or two unfortunately.

https://www.ocregister.com/2019/01/25/kyle-kuzmas-hip-strain-creates-fresh-health-concerns-for-struggling-lakers/

Man.... I hope Bron is getting close.