Who Has to Fill in for the Insufficient Lakers?
Austin Reaves
To put it mildly, Austin Reaves’s start to the year has been confusing. He recently produced back-to-back 20-pieces earlier this week—20 points against the Magic and a season-high 23 against the Heat—after early issues with efficiency. Fans believed Reaves was improving, even though both of his outings ended in defeat. That was before to Wednesday, when Reaves finished with seven points on 2/9 from the field and 0/4 from three.
Reaves’s “growing pains” are a natural part of the process, according to Lakers writer Alex Regla, who also pointed out that his weariness from his excellent summer performance has had a big impact on his ability to create shots and jumper overall. For Reaves, the team’s 5-out system—which emphasises ball handling—has created a special transition time. Regla observes:
“Reaves has manned the Lakers’ offence on several occasions when he has appeared rigid, unsure of himself, and doing what he believes to be right rather than what he feels is right—qualities that are uncharacteristic of a player who has excelled because of improvisation.
Instead of moving to the beat of the music, it represents a dancer who is following the painted footsteps on the floor. He is not passing to teammates, but to places.
Reaves, who was praised as the third-best player on the Lakers last season, needs to perform at that calibre this time around. He must demonstrate that he can play to the level of his contract and that the previous season wasn’t an anomaly. Imagine how well he could perform once the rest of the team is well again if he can return to his previous level of play while Davis and other key players are sidelined.
Wood, Christian
Expect more from backup big man Christian Wood while Davis recovers from a hip ailment and Jason Hayes is sidelined due to an ankle sprain. Wood has performed rather well aside from his awful showing on Wednesday, when he went without a point and committed four fouls. He is shooting 48% from the field and 41% from beyond the arc, averaging 7.8 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.
Even after eight games, Wood has performed admirably in his role thus far. He’s settling in nicely as the backup centre, which may be encouraging if his playing time rises. Wood has been able to reduce the team’s three-point shooting percentage. His 41% percentage is second only to AD’s, and among this year’s Lakers, his 1.3 perimeter makes per game is fifth. In the upcoming days, LA will face Derandre Ayton, Domantas Sabonis, and Jaren Jackson Jr., so C-Wood will need to be at the top of his game in the paint.
Prince Taurean
Lastly, one of LA’s primary perimeter threats was expected to be veteran starter Taurean Prince. In seven games, Prince is shooting 39% from outside the arc, but his scoring is not up to par. Prince has not been flawless, with the exception of his 18-point performance on his debut night and his 20-point outing against the Kings a few weeks back. In his past three games, he has scored a total of 20 points, shooting 8/19, including 2/8 from three. While his defence has been solid, his offence obviously needs improvement.
Prince needs to improve moving ahead as one of the team’s perimeter scorers, particularly when going up against youthful, skilled opponents. It’s important to remember that Prince is somewhat to blame for his subpar play. His usage rate thus far is a career-low 13.7%. The fact that he isn’t being used as a spot-up shooter but rather is being used in pick-and-rolls doesn’t help either. Prince understands that despite his injuries, he and the rest of the team must persevere. In order for him to regain his rhythm, the Lakers will need to win these next few games. He is an essential player on both sides of the court.
The Last Word on the Shorthanded Lakers
Along with LeBron, D’Angelo Russell, and Rui Hachimura, these three must now step up to the plate since Anthony Davis, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Gabe Vincent are currently out with injuries. Each of them offers something special to the discussion. Reducing those three’s burden today will benefit the team much in the long run. After the aforementioned players return and assuming these three gain confidence, it will be fair to assess the new-look Lakers.
