5 things we learned from Lakers’ 101-93 over Bucks
LOS ANGELES –
The Los Angeles Lakers extended their win streak to three games on
Friday night with a 101-93 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Lakers entered the fourth quarter trailing 72-65, but things quickly turned in their favor in the fourth quarter with an offensive spark in the form of Wayne Ellington, who had entered the period missing all six of his shots up to that point. He appeared to put his struggles behind him by scoring 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
After Wesley Johnson nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 81 midway through the period, Ellington scored the next nine Laker points including a 20-foot jumper that gave his team a 92-86 advantage with 3:40 remaining. Jordan Hill also knocked down a couple of important shots down the stretch with last being a jumper with 1:12 left in the fourth quarter.
The Bucks had continued to battle back, but Los Angeles appeared to have an answer for every bucket. Johnson sealed the win with a steal of Jerryd Bayless‘ pass, and dunked over Giannis Antetokounmpo to put his team up 98-91 with one minute left in the game.
“I’m a confident player, but at the same time my teammates got me going,” Ellington said. “J(eremy) Lin found me a few times and I got going from there. When you’re a shooter than you got to shoot the ball. When you find a rhythm and get going and it’s gone.”
Lakers head coach Byron Scott also didn’t lose any confidence in the five-year veteran despite no made field goals entering the final quarter of play.
“Wayne has a lot of confidence in what he’s doing right now, and the way he’s playing,” Scott said. “He just came alive when we needed him to and made some big shots for us. It didn’t surprise me at all, I knew he wasn’t going to stay down. He kept his patience, he didn’t get discouraged, he just kept playing.”
Los Angeles had raced out to a 6-0 lead making their first three field goal attempts of the game, which they expanded to as much as 10 points in the period. Rookie Jordan Clarkson scored a quarter-high seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with four assists, and three rebounds that helped his team hold a 24-18 advantage heading into the second quarter.
Momentum shifted in the second quarter, with the Bucks taking a 43-36 lead 19-2 run capped off by a floater in transition by Bayless. However, Los Angeles closed the gap to two points at 47-45 after a layup by Clarkson in the waning seconds of the period.
This was the Lakers’ first three-game win streak since mid-December. Here are five things we learned from Friday’s win:
Jordan Clarkson’s continued progress
Clarkson got off to a hot start in the first quarter with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with four assists, and three rebounds. He had an impressive sequence on consecutive possession with a pull-up jumper, and followed it up with a bounce pass to Carlos Boozer for the layup off the Bucks’ turnover.
His production took a dip in the second half, in particular the fourth quarter with Jeremy Lin taking the floor for the entire period while he was on the bench. He wasn’t on the floor in the fourth quarter due to Scott going with more of the hot hand with that lineup featuring Lin that got them back in the game.
All in all, it was another productive night out of the rookie with his 12th double-digit output of the season, and he is averaging 13.8 points since becoming the starting point guard 14 games ago.
His head coach has noticed his steady improvement as the season has progressed since he inserted him in the lineup.
“He’s comfortable, he’s playing well,” Scott said. “Defensively, he was a little upset with himself that he didn’t do a better job on the pick-and-roll coverage. Other than that, I thought he played extremely well. He’s playing much better now. He’s reading the defenses better, even though he still has a lot to learn.”
Clarkson also echoed similar sentiments about his progression, which he emphasized the playing time as the key factor to his improvement.
“I’m getting to my pull-up easier. I am forcing the drive (to the basket). I’m taking it when it’s there,” Clarkson said. “Now I am playing off feel. If the jump shot is there then I take it, and reading defenses looking from my teammates.”
With Clarkson remaining in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future, it will allow him to get some more much-needed experience that will help him grow as a player.
Jeremy Lin’s Production
The 26-year-old was once again a major factor off the bench with 14 p0ints, six assists, and five rebounds in 30 minutes played. He had seven points in the first half on 3-of-4 shooting with two assists, and two rebounds.
Lin cooled off in the third quarter with just points as Clarkson had control of the primary ball handling duties leaving the five-year veteran in more of a off-ball type of role when the two were on the floor together. With Clarkson out of the game, he took over the reigns in the fourth quarter helping the Lakers mount a comeback as he scored seven points and four assists.
In the four games played since the All-Star break, Lin has been on an offensive tear averaging a team-best 16.3 points per game on 50 percent shooting, and has lead the team in scoring from the bench twice. He has also scored in double-figures in six out of his last nine games.
Scott has been quite impressed with Lin’s high level of play, which he highlighted his aggressiveness as the key to his recent success.
“What I saw tonight was a guy who was aggressive, just playing the way we asked him to play,” Scott said. “He’s had an up-and-down season, just like a lot of our guys have, but in the last few games he’s really starting to get into a little bit of a groove. I think he’s played extremely well.”
Lin will continue to have the opportunity to play increased minutes as he did on Friday (30 minutes) with Ronnie Price out for the season. It will be interesting to see how Lin finishes the season.
Robert Sacre steps up
The three-year veteran big man had one of his best of the season with 12 points with five rebounds in 19 minutes played.
Robert Sacre did much of his damage in the first half with eight points and five rebounds. He was active on the glass, and scored a majority of his points in the paint. With Jordan Hill struggling with his shot (33 percent shooting from the field), Sacre’s production helped fill some of the offensive void.
However, these type of nights are not typical of Sacre given that his role is more suited to being that of a rebounder, and getting touches in the paint from time to time in limited minutes. Although that may be the case for the 25-year-old, but when has an offensive outburst it is an added bonus for the Lakers.
Wayne Ellington steps up
Ellington continued to be a reliable offensive contributor for a second consecutive, however it took him three quarters to do so on Friday night.
He had missed his first six shots of the game, but kept confidence in his ability and got it going in the fourth quarter with a quarter-best 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting. This included scoring nine consecutive points that gave his team a six-point lead late in the game.
“Obviously, I knew I didn’t make a shot yet,” Ellington said. “Butt at the same time I knew that if I got a clean look I was very capable of getting it going. I’m a confident player at the end of the day. But at the same time, my teammates got me going.”
He is coming off a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds in the 100-97 win on the road against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday. His head coach accredits his improved play to his transformation as a player into more of a shot creator than just a pure 3-pointer shooter since his days with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“Wayne’s game is evolving. When I had him in Cleveland, we talked at the end of the season when I had my meetings with guys and the main thing was for him to be able to create his own shot and put in on the floor a little bit more,” Scott said. “He’s elevated his game. He has a lot of confidence in himself, and we just told him to keep shooting and once he hit one, he seemed to just come alive.”
The Lakers will need Ellington continue to be a source of offense especially with Kobe Bryant out for the season. If he can do so, it provide the team with much needed reliability down the stretch of the season.
Points in the paint a problem
The Lakers’ season has been a disappointment in many ways, one of which has been their porous play defensively in the paint.
Entering Friday’s game, Los Angeles had allowed the fifth most points in the paint in the league this season at 45.2. That issue persisted against the Bucks giving up 52 points on 52 percent shooting. This includes 20 points scored in the paint in the second quarter on 71.4 percent shooting.
It has been one of the key problems defensively for the Lakers, which has often times hurt their chances of getting back into games because their lack of rim protection outside of Ed Davis. Their current roster doesn’t necessary hold players known for playing defense, but their lack of consistency in that aspect just stacks on top of their other problems.
All in all, this is definitely an area that the team must continue to improving in this season, and look to acquire help in the offseason
The Lakers entered the fourth quarter trailing 72-65, but things quickly turned in their favor in the fourth quarter with an offensive spark in the form of Wayne Ellington, who had entered the period missing all six of his shots up to that point. He appeared to put his struggles behind him by scoring 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
After Wesley Johnson nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 81 midway through the period, Ellington scored the next nine Laker points including a 20-foot jumper that gave his team a 92-86 advantage with 3:40 remaining. Jordan Hill also knocked down a couple of important shots down the stretch with last being a jumper with 1:12 left in the fourth quarter.
The Bucks had continued to battle back, but Los Angeles appeared to have an answer for every bucket. Johnson sealed the win with a steal of Jerryd Bayless‘ pass, and dunked over Giannis Antetokounmpo to put his team up 98-91 with one minute left in the game.
“I’m a confident player, but at the same time my teammates got me going,” Ellington said. “J(eremy) Lin found me a few times and I got going from there. When you’re a shooter than you got to shoot the ball. When you find a rhythm and get going and it’s gone.”
Lakers head coach Byron Scott also didn’t lose any confidence in the five-year veteran despite no made field goals entering the final quarter of play.
“Wayne has a lot of confidence in what he’s doing right now, and the way he’s playing,” Scott said. “He just came alive when we needed him to and made some big shots for us. It didn’t surprise me at all, I knew he wasn’t going to stay down. He kept his patience, he didn’t get discouraged, he just kept playing.”
Los Angeles had raced out to a 6-0 lead making their first three field goal attempts of the game, which they expanded to as much as 10 points in the period. Rookie Jordan Clarkson scored a quarter-high seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with four assists, and three rebounds that helped his team hold a 24-18 advantage heading into the second quarter.
Momentum shifted in the second quarter, with the Bucks taking a 43-36 lead 19-2 run capped off by a floater in transition by Bayless. However, Los Angeles closed the gap to two points at 47-45 after a layup by Clarkson in the waning seconds of the period.
This was the Lakers’ first three-game win streak since mid-December. Here are five things we learned from Friday’s win:
Jordan Clarkson’s continued progress
Clarkson got off to a hot start in the first quarter with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with four assists, and three rebounds. He had an impressive sequence on consecutive possession with a pull-up jumper, and followed it up with a bounce pass to Carlos Boozer for the layup off the Bucks’ turnover.
His production took a dip in the second half, in particular the fourth quarter with Jeremy Lin taking the floor for the entire period while he was on the bench. He wasn’t on the floor in the fourth quarter due to Scott going with more of the hot hand with that lineup featuring Lin that got them back in the game.
All in all, it was another productive night out of the rookie with his 12th double-digit output of the season, and he is averaging 13.8 points since becoming the starting point guard 14 games ago.
His head coach has noticed his steady improvement as the season has progressed since he inserted him in the lineup.
“He’s comfortable, he’s playing well,” Scott said. “Defensively, he was a little upset with himself that he didn’t do a better job on the pick-and-roll coverage. Other than that, I thought he played extremely well. He’s playing much better now. He’s reading the defenses better, even though he still has a lot to learn.”
Clarkson also echoed similar sentiments about his progression, which he emphasized the playing time as the key factor to his improvement.
“I’m getting to my pull-up easier. I am forcing the drive (to the basket). I’m taking it when it’s there,” Clarkson said. “Now I am playing off feel. If the jump shot is there then I take it, and reading defenses looking from my teammates.”
With Clarkson remaining in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future, it will allow him to get some more much-needed experience that will help him grow as a player.
Jeremy Lin’s Production
The 26-year-old was once again a major factor off the bench with 14 p0ints, six assists, and five rebounds in 30 minutes played. He had seven points in the first half on 3-of-4 shooting with two assists, and two rebounds.
Lin cooled off in the third quarter with just points as Clarkson had control of the primary ball handling duties leaving the five-year veteran in more of a off-ball type of role when the two were on the floor together. With Clarkson out of the game, he took over the reigns in the fourth quarter helping the Lakers mount a comeback as he scored seven points and four assists.
In the four games played since the All-Star break, Lin has been on an offensive tear averaging a team-best 16.3 points per game on 50 percent shooting, and has lead the team in scoring from the bench twice. He has also scored in double-figures in six out of his last nine games.
Scott has been quite impressed with Lin’s high level of play, which he highlighted his aggressiveness as the key to his recent success.
“What I saw tonight was a guy who was aggressive, just playing the way we asked him to play,” Scott said. “He’s had an up-and-down season, just like a lot of our guys have, but in the last few games he’s really starting to get into a little bit of a groove. I think he’s played extremely well.”
Lin will continue to have the opportunity to play increased minutes as he did on Friday (30 minutes) with Ronnie Price out for the season. It will be interesting to see how Lin finishes the season.
Robert Sacre steps up
The three-year veteran big man had one of his best of the season with 12 points with five rebounds in 19 minutes played.
Robert Sacre did much of his damage in the first half with eight points and five rebounds. He was active on the glass, and scored a majority of his points in the paint. With Jordan Hill struggling with his shot (33 percent shooting from the field), Sacre’s production helped fill some of the offensive void.
However, these type of nights are not typical of Sacre given that his role is more suited to being that of a rebounder, and getting touches in the paint from time to time in limited minutes. Although that may be the case for the 25-year-old, but when has an offensive outburst it is an added bonus for the Lakers.
Wayne Ellington steps up
Ellington continued to be a reliable offensive contributor for a second consecutive, however it took him three quarters to do so on Friday night.
He had missed his first six shots of the game, but kept confidence in his ability and got it going in the fourth quarter with a quarter-best 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting. This included scoring nine consecutive points that gave his team a six-point lead late in the game.
“Obviously, I knew I didn’t make a shot yet,” Ellington said. “Butt at the same time I knew that if I got a clean look I was very capable of getting it going. I’m a confident player at the end of the day. But at the same time, my teammates got me going.”
He is coming off a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds in the 100-97 win on the road against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday. His head coach accredits his improved play to his transformation as a player into more of a shot creator than just a pure 3-pointer shooter since his days with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“Wayne’s game is evolving. When I had him in Cleveland, we talked at the end of the season when I had my meetings with guys and the main thing was for him to be able to create his own shot and put in on the floor a little bit more,” Scott said. “He’s elevated his game. He has a lot of confidence in himself, and we just told him to keep shooting and once he hit one, he seemed to just come alive.”
The Lakers will need Ellington continue to be a source of offense especially with Kobe Bryant out for the season. If he can do so, it provide the team with much needed reliability down the stretch of the season.
Points in the paint a problem
The Lakers’ season has been a disappointment in many ways, one of which has been their porous play defensively in the paint.
Entering Friday’s game, Los Angeles had allowed the fifth most points in the paint in the league this season at 45.2. That issue persisted against the Bucks giving up 52 points on 52 percent shooting. This includes 20 points scored in the paint in the second quarter on 71.4 percent shooting.
It has been one of the key problems defensively for the Lakers, which has often times hurt their chances of getting back into games because their lack of rim protection outside of Ed Davis. Their current roster doesn’t necessary hold players known for playing defense, but their lack of consistency in that aspect just stacks on top of their other problems.
All in all, this is definitely an area that the team must continue to improving in this season, and look to acquire help in the offseason