ImageImageImageImageImage

The remaining 23 games

Moderators: Danny Darko, Kilroy, TyCobb

stan francisco
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,294
And1: 1,538
Joined: Oct 20, 2015
 

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#101 » by stan francisco » Sun Mar 12, 2023 10:56 pm

tamaraw08 wrote:
zuju wrote:
Pythagoras wrote:
These wins are great on multiple levels.

Obviously, the wins are moving the Lakers up in the standings, but these wins also take pressure off Lebron to feel like he needs to rush back to help the team sneak into the play-in. He can take his time, and try to get as right as possible.

Additionally, a win like this takes the pressure off of AD. With D'Lo back, he now doesn't have to feel like he has to be perfect on a nightly basis just for the team to gut out a win.

Best of all these wins build up momentum and confidence. If the Lakers win their next 3 (very good chance IMO), they're going to head into the Dallas game with a ton of confidence.

I think a 40-37 or 41-36 record entering April is VERY doable.


Very much agreed with all your points. minus the expectations.

They better not expecting highly on themselves. They need the sense of urgency until they lock in to playoff spot. Play with sense of urgency, intensity and energy is all they need now.

With Dlo back, you can withhold AD's minutes on the court a bit to around 30 mins/game to save some legs. Other than that, energy and sense of urgency. Losing 1 or 2 games may mean falling out of the play-in spots in the West.

Perfect scenario is they get 6th spot and avoid the risk of losing in the play-in tourney but to get there I think they need to ride AD hard and play him for most of the remaining games. But the risk of course is Davis getting injured.
But if they sit him for 3 plus games, who will cover the opposing centers with Bamba out, Rui, Vando who are 6-8?


Well, if AD gets injured the season is over no matter what, and we can only win it all if he’s in prime game shape so we might as well play him 32 mpg until the playoffs, just not much more.

And yes, I think the sixth spot was what LBJ referred to when he said these 23 games were his most important regular season games ever. That was the goal. 17-6 was believed to be enough. I’d guess 18-5 would do it but 15-8 is again my guess.
PG: D Lo / Reaves / Vincent(IL) / JHS
SG: Christie / Dinwiddie / Lewis / Mays
SF: LBJ / Prince / Reddish / Windler
PF: Rui / Vando(IL) / LBJ
CTR: AD / Hayes / Wood

Modern era NBA titles:
LAL 11, CHI 6, SAS 5, BOS 5, GSW 4
tamaraw08
Analyst
Posts: 3,207
And1: 1,235
Joined: Feb 13, 2019
     

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#102 » by tamaraw08 » Mon Mar 13, 2023 12:29 pm

stan francisco wrote:
tamaraw08 wrote:
zuju wrote:
Very much agreed with all your points. minus the expectations.

They better not expecting highly on themselves. They need the sense of urgency until they lock in to playoff spot. Play with sense of urgency, intensity and energy is all they need now.

With Dlo back, you can withhold AD's minutes on the court a bit to around 30 mins/game to save some legs. Other than that, energy and sense of urgency. Losing 1 or 2 games may mean falling out of the play-in spots in the West.

Perfect scenario is they get 6th spot and avoid the risk of losing in the play-in tourney but to get there I think they need to ride AD hard and play him for most of the remaining games. But the risk of course is Davis getting injured.
But if they sit him for 3 plus games, who will cover the opposing centers with Bamba out, Rui, Vando who are 6-8?


Well, if AD gets injured the season is over no matter what, and we can only win it all if he’s in prime game shape so we might as well play him 32 mpg until the playoffs, just not much more.

And yes, I think the sixth spot was what LBJ referred to when he said these 23 games were his most important regular season games ever. That was the goal. 17-6 was believed to be enough. I’d guess 18-5 would do it but 15-8 is again my guess.

Play AD 23 games with 32 mins max? That’s a realistic plan…. for a normal player but AD who has a history to getting injured after 20-25 games? So he scored 8 pts on limited shots mostly because he got double teamed and his teammates getting hot then take 18 shots and score 17 after that game?
It just seem to me he either struggle or he has these little cracks inside his body that gets bigger after playing 20-25 games. I hope I’m wrong.
stan francisco
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,294
And1: 1,538
Joined: Oct 20, 2015
 

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#103 » by stan francisco » Mon Mar 13, 2023 5:37 pm

GSW - W
DAL - W
MEM - L (James on IL)
OKC - W
MIN - L
GSW - W
MEM - W
TOR - W
NYK - L

6-3 since ASB
4-3 since James’ injury

Remaining games:
@NO
@HOU
DAL
ORL
PHX
OKC
CHI
@CHI
@MIN
@HOU
@UTA
@LAC
PHX
UTA

For defensive purposes (winning), here are the rotations I’d go with for the rest of the season:
PG: Reaves / Schroeder / D Lo
SG: Walker IV / D Lo / Beasley
SF: LBJ / Hachimura / Christie
PF: Vanderbilt / AD / Brown Jr
C: AD / Bamba / Gabriel

There is not one PG in the league that D Lo can defend. SG with playmaking abilities is what he is.

Walker was a beast all season until pinned deep on the pine after the trades. I’d start him at SG since D Lo can’t guard elite SGs.

Beasley is under performing.

The role players playing the hardest on both ends are Reaves, Vanderbilt, Walker. Start them!
PG: D Lo / Reaves / Vincent(IL) / JHS
SG: Christie / Dinwiddie / Lewis / Mays
SF: LBJ / Prince / Reddish / Windler
PF: Rui / Vando(IL) / LBJ
CTR: AD / Hayes / Wood

Modern era NBA titles:
LAL 11, CHI 6, SAS 5, BOS 5, GSW 4
Kilroy
Forum Mod - Lakers
Forum Mod - Lakers
Posts: 21,520
And1: 12,222
Joined: Jul 10, 2006
Location: The Motel 9 in Vegas
       

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#104 » by Kilroy » Mon Mar 13, 2023 6:57 pm

If Dlo plays at a high level for the remaining games and throughout our playoff run, I'll be a believer... Until then, I just don't trust him as a true 3rd option...
I am a bit surprised how far Walker has fallen off, but he looked terrible in the minutes he's been seeing lately, so i can't say he deserves to start over beasley... beasley has show some flashes of incredible play but has been spotty. i think he just needs more time to get acclimated, and I think he plays better off LeBron...

We need a rim protecting C... Whiteside maybe... Maybe Moses Brown, or V Carey Jr? but Gabriel, as much as I like his energy, shouldn't see the floor unless it's a blowout or we're going small-ball run and gun...
Never have rice at Hanzo's house...
LAKESHOW
RealGM
Posts: 17,139
And1: 4,177
Joined: Mar 14, 2002
Location: HOME OF THE 17 TIME WORLD CHAMPIONS!

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#105 » by LAKESHOW » Tue Mar 14, 2023 2:22 am

We gotta win the winnable games. That freakin game was ours for the taking. And our line up is better that the freakin Knicks lineup. Difficult matchups? Understood. Tough win. But those freakin ones right at our finger tips, we gotta take those
Home of the 17 Time World Champions
tamaraw08
Analyst
Posts: 3,207
And1: 1,235
Joined: Feb 13, 2019
     

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#106 » by tamaraw08 » Tue Mar 14, 2023 6:03 am

LAKESHOW wrote:We gotta win the winnable games. That freakin game was ours for the taking. And our line up is better that the freakin Knicks lineup. Difficult matchups? Understood. Tough win. But those freakin ones right at our finger tips, we gotta take those

What separates an alpha superstar from an allstar is the former digs deep if he’s struggling shooting the ball. He impose his will by getting to the line, block and/or change shots, dominate the rebounds, fire up teammates etc. AD did rebound but only had 5 FTS making just one, with one block. He’s owning to his shortcomings but I’m getting a little tired of that. I’m hoping he’s okay though and nothing is wrong physically.
Beasley needs to find his touch if not Ham should be ready to play Reaves more. This guy makes things happen and not just shoot.
stan francisco
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,294
And1: 1,538
Joined: Oct 20, 2015
 

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#107 » by stan francisco » Wed Mar 15, 2023 9:00 am

7-3
PG: D Lo / Reaves / Vincent(IL) / JHS
SG: Christie / Dinwiddie / Lewis / Mays
SF: LBJ / Prince / Reddish / Windler
PF: Rui / Vando(IL) / LBJ
CTR: AD / Hayes / Wood

Modern era NBA titles:
LAL 11, CHI 6, SAS 5, BOS 5, GSW 4
Pythagoras
Analyst
Posts: 3,601
And1: 3,282
Joined: Aug 15, 2012
Location: KC, Mo
     

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#108 » by Pythagoras » Wed Mar 15, 2023 6:56 pm

I was about as upset as I’ve been in a while after that Knicks loss. I was especially disappointed with AD. I’m one of his biggest defenders on this site, but for him to deliver a no-show like that while Randle was going off was super frustrating.

If the team wants to get out of the play-in range then I think they need to be looking at 44 or 45 wins IMO. 45 definitely does it, 44 would be a little more dicey though.

Winning the next three ahead of two huge matchups with OKC and Phoenix would be really nice…
Numbers rule the universe.
User avatar
zimpy27
Forum Mod
Forum Mod
Posts: 38,857
And1: 36,496
Joined: Jul 13, 2014

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#109 » by zimpy27 » Thu Mar 16, 2023 10:29 am

zimpy27 wrote:Assign a % chance they win each game and add them up, divide by 100 and you have the answer of how many wins you think they get.

GS 70%
@DAL 50%
@MEM 30%
@OKC* 50%
MIN 70%
GS 70%
MEM 60%
TOR 70%
NY 70%
@NO 70%
@HOU* 90%
DAL 70%
ORL 90%
PHX 50%
OKC 70%
CHI 80%
@CHI 60%
@MIN 50%
@HOU 90%
@UTA 60%
@LAC* 40%
PHX 50%
UTA 80%

15 wins and 8 losses

They could be lucky and nab 6th spot.
Likely that they make play-in with a double chance


Update..

Projected them to have a 7-4 record and they have a 7-4 record...

So they are on track even though they've been without AD for 2 games and without LeBron for 9 games.
"Let's play some basketball!" - Fergie
stan francisco
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,294
And1: 1,538
Joined: Oct 20, 2015
 

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#110 » by stan francisco » Thu Mar 16, 2023 1:42 pm

Start Austin Reaves at point. D Lo needs to come off the bench until he gives a flying f about protecting home base. Yesterday made blatantly obvious that D Lo plays absolutely no D at all.

D No.

Think that’ll be exposed in the playoffs by coaches like T Lue and M Williams? All night long until we’re eliminated 0-4.
PG: D Lo / Reaves / Vincent(IL) / JHS
SG: Christie / Dinwiddie / Lewis / Mays
SF: LBJ / Prince / Reddish / Windler
PF: Rui / Vando(IL) / LBJ
CTR: AD / Hayes / Wood

Modern era NBA titles:
LAL 11, CHI 6, SAS 5, BOS 5, GSW 4
bb22
Starter
Posts: 2,395
And1: 984
Joined: Oct 08, 2012

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#111 » by bb22 » Thu Mar 16, 2023 5:30 pm

Losing to the rockets means they put extra pressure to win against a solid team. Disappointed at the loss, but it was a second day of a back to back and they were coming off a big win against a rival play-in team. Destined for the play-in, and it won’t be easy unless they make it to the 7th spot.
stan francisco
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,294
And1: 1,538
Joined: Oct 20, 2015
 

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#112 » by stan francisco » Sat Mar 18, 2023 11:29 am

Losing to a Luka-less Mavs made it 7-5 since ASB.

It’s fun to watch players spectate when the other team gets free layups.
PG: D Lo / Reaves / Vincent(IL) / JHS
SG: Christie / Dinwiddie / Lewis / Mays
SF: LBJ / Prince / Reddish / Windler
PF: Rui / Vando(IL) / LBJ
CTR: AD / Hayes / Wood

Modern era NBA titles:
LAL 11, CHI 6, SAS 5, BOS 5, GSW 4
SweetTouch
RealGM
Posts: 20,087
And1: 2,956
Joined: Mar 29, 2010
Location: Fl

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#113 » by SweetTouch » Sat Mar 18, 2023 3:25 pm

Not sure how to feel about these lakers

Can’t even beat luka less mavs
Stop being so disrespectful.
User avatar
TylersLakers
RealGM
Posts: 10,878
And1: 2,809
Joined: Jan 20, 2006
Location: Winnipeg Canada
     

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#114 » by TylersLakers » Sat Mar 18, 2023 5:58 pm

An absolutely pathetic loss. Trying not to overreact - normally AD doesn't make catastrophic defensive mistakes like that. But two of the last three losses (Knicks, Mavs) were games where the team was without their star player and for both games the response was "Well, that wouldn't happen again."

Knicks: Troy Brown going 0-8 from 3. Beasley going 2-10 from 3. AD 1-5 FT line, missing easy layups, etc.
Mavs: AD collapse, 5-20 3PT shooting as a team, D-Lo and Beasley 0-9 from 3PT combined.

This team just finds ways to lose games and that's not a good sign. If we had this roster from the very start and we were 8-10 games over .500, these losses wouldn't really matter and without LeBron, the goal would be to tread water. We haven't just treaded water, we've gone beyond that (as stan francisco mentioned) going 7-5 since the All Star break. Considering the position we're in, that's not good enough and it's not fair for this team but it is what it is. We have to punch above our weight class and without one of our stars, that's almost impossible.

But these types of games you just cannot choke away. Pathetic.
Image
danfantastk32
Assistant Coach
Posts: 4,203
And1: 1,633
Joined: Dec 20, 2015
     

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#115 » by danfantastk32 » Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:07 pm

I wonder if we could get much from Portland in a trade for AD? You gotta think Portland is desperate to put SOMETHING around Dame. And if their FO is anything like ours....the blinders will come on, and only the positives will shine into their minds. "Just imagine what it would look like!!"

God, if we could just pawn him off somehow, for something decent. Hopefully that would start the ball rolling, and the rest would get moved. I'd kill to be able to start our rebuild now. Why start it after 2 more seasons. The writing on the wall is clear as day.
TrueLakerFan
Ballboy
Posts: 23
And1: 5
Joined: Mar 17, 2023

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#116 » by TrueLakerFan » Sun Mar 19, 2023 1:47 am

danfantastk32 wrote:I wonder if we could get much from Portland in a trade for AD? You gotta think Portland is desperate to put SOMETHING around Dame. And if their FO is anything like ours....the blinders will come on, and only the positives will shine into their minds. "Just imagine what it would look like!!"

God, if we could just pawn him off somehow, for something decent. Hopefully that would start the ball rolling, and the rest would get moved. I'd kill to be able to start our rebuild now. Why start it after 2 more seasons. The writing on the wall is clear as day.

Portland has nothing that would get them a player of AD caliber, and as long as Lebron is a Laker they won’t be looking to rebuild.
tamaraw08
Analyst
Posts: 3,207
And1: 1,235
Joined: Feb 13, 2019
     

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#117 » by tamaraw08 » Sun Mar 19, 2023 6:09 am

TylersLakers wrote:An absolutely pathetic loss. Trying not to overreact - normally AD doesn't make catastrophic defensive mistakes like that. But two of the last three losses (Knicks, Mavs) were games where the team was without their star player and for both games the response was "Well, that wouldn't happen again."

Knicks: Troy Brown going 0-8 from 3. Beasley going 2-10 from 3. AD 1-5 FT line, missing easy layups, etc.
Mavs: AD collapse, 5-20 3PT shooting as a team, D-Lo and Beasley 0-9 from 3PT combined.

This team just finds ways to lose games and that's not a good sign. If we had this roster from the very start and we were 8-10 games over .500, these losses wouldn't really matter and without LeBron, the goal would be to tread water. We haven't just treaded water, we've gone beyond that (as stan francisco mentioned) going 7-5 since the All Star break. Considering the position we're in, that's not good enough and it's not fair for this team but it is what it is. We have to punch above our weight class and without one of our stars, that's almost impossible.

But these types of games you just cannot choke away. Pathetic.

What is sad is most fans blamed the losses before on Russ’ dumb turnovers and horrible shot selection. Well he’s not here anymore.
We can’t expect players to have good shooting nights consistently but I was hoping everyone will all be locked in defensively, dive for loose balls, try to penetrate to get higher % shots or FTs. I didn’t see the game because im out the country but I doubt if D’Lo did all these necessary things.
Fouling 3 pt shooters esp late is inexcusable particularly for veteran players.
zuju
Senior
Posts: 522
And1: 119
Joined: Jul 14, 2012

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#118 » by zuju » Sun Mar 19, 2023 8:50 am

Very very disappointed with the show lately.

I get that NY was tough with their ongoing momentum even without Brunson. A lose to the eastern conference team is not as bad. Team always have bad games here and there.

And then the Houston game was pathetic. While they took it as the most important 23 regular season game. I don't see their act being consistent with their words. Shut down AD for precautionary reason. Fine. It was still a winnable game regardless. Why don't they sign a Center with both Bamba and AD out? What was Dlo doing on the court? shooting bricks and **** defense? When you shoot bricks, you have to go to the rim and ft line to regain your touch rather than continuing to shoot bricks

I though it would be a easier game for them last night with Doncic out. I was wrong. Dlo shoot bricks again. Yes it is correct to keep shooting but you have to be smart to get some better looks and/or attack the rim when you are cold!!!! AD was dreaming late in the game wasting the come back in the fourth quarter.

If they keep playing like this, I don't see us a playoff team this season. After the trade, they rely too much on 3 pointer shootings. You can win it easily when you lights up. But, more often, you lose due to bad shooting nights. They have all the way to lose these important games. Originally, if we had won the Mavs game, we are tied with them. Now?

When you think of them losing to a Brucson-less NY, pathetic Houston and Doncic-less Mavs, it huts. What a shame

AD is not a leader. He needs someone to fire him up. Rondo may be a good one here who AD respect and can draw plays.Either as a player or a coach would do
LAKESHOW
RealGM
Posts: 17,139
And1: 4,177
Joined: Mar 14, 2002
Location: HOME OF THE 17 TIME WORLD CHAMPIONS!

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#119 » by LAKESHOW » Mon Mar 20, 2023 4:58 am

Hey, we beat the Magic
Home of the 17 Time World Champions
User avatar
Beethoven
Head Coach
Posts: 6,508
And1: 3,805
Joined: May 03, 2012
Location: Utopian Dystopia
 

Re: The remaining 23 games 

Post#120 » by Beethoven » Mon Mar 20, 2023 7:50 am

We have to win some of these tougher games, with or without AD, to showcase any resemblance of a chance to make any noise in the playoffs.
..Not in the way of beating a team miraculously after being down by 20+ at the half. We have to be capable of methodically putting away teams for at least 3 quarters leaving one junk quarter.

Just showing up to the play-in or 6th seed by way of default, having other teams lose/pull themselves out of contention for you, isn't really a championship mindset. And you won't get far with that.
Kobe Bryant forever
GO LAKERS
8-)

Return to Los Angeles Lakers