With the Lakers down under .500 and failing to draw sellout crowds, disappointments in this season’s team are easy to spot. Sometimes you don’t even have to look.
For example, early in the second half, when Dwight Howard spent a second joking about a missed Portland free throw and the next getting a rebound out of the hands of Russell Westbrook. Or when Westbrook felt a Trail Blazer on his back and saw a wall of defenders in front of him, coughing up the ball as he pushed to a certain failure. Slow to recover, the Trail Blazers capitalized on the numerical advantage and hit a 3-pointer.
Those were some of Wednesday’s most embarrassing mistakes, a rotating list of mistakes that have kept the Lakers from anywhere near any sustainable level of success.
But amidst all that chaos, there has been one sign of consistency: Carmelo Anthony wearing the same braids, the same headband, celebrating 3-pointers with the same lateral movement and the same fingers pointing to his temple.
“Just stay like ‘Melo,” Anthony Davis said with a smile.
Anthony hit five 3-pointers on his way to scoring 24 points in a 99-94 win, the Lakers winning for the first time since LeBron James left the lineup with a swollen knee.
“LeBron gets a lot of credit for what he’s doing in ’19,” Frank Vogel said. “And I don’t think people are talking enough about what Caremlo is doing in Year 19. It really is extraordinary.”
The Lakers are 10-4 when Anthony hits at least four 3-pointers.
James, who was listed as doubtful all day after missing the previous three games, continued to receive off-team treatment and was not in the building for Wednesday’s game. Without him, the Lakers relied on Davis and Anthony to propel them through a gritty game against Portland. Davis had 30 and 15 rebounds, a physically dominant performance in his fourth game since returning from a knee injury.
“I’m just trying to lead the team,” Davis said. “…I just tried to come out with the mindset of ending this streak. … Play hard, play with some urgency.”
Fresh off a defense-focused practice Tuesday, the Lakers held Portland to just 16 points in the first quarter as they opened up a double-digit lead. But a series of lazy shutdowns from Portland’s shooters allowed the Trail Blazers to heat up in the second, scoring 37 points against a suddenly defenseless defense.
Despite the mistakes, the Lakers focused enough on defense to steady themselves and finish off the Trail Blazers, ending their three-game losing streak.
The defensive gains, albeit against a Damian Lillard-less Portland team, were positive considering how much Frank Vogel and the Lakers’ coaching staff challenged the team in intense practice Tuesday.
“It has to be better. The execution has to be better with what we’re trying to do,” Vogel said before the game about the team’s defense. “… Effort, focus, concentration, toughness, hustle, vigilance, execution of the scheme. It’s new to a lot of our team this year, and it takes time for the guys to learn it.
Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook drives to the basket past Portland Trail Blazers guard Jusuf Nurkic, left, and guard CJ McCollum, right, in the first half at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday.
(Allen J. Cockroaches / Los Angeles Times)
“And obviously the lineups have changed a lot, so there are a lot of moving parts there. So I just try to make sure and get the job done.”
By no means are the Lakers’ problems unique: They’re actually ranked lower in offensive efficiency (23rd) this season than they are in defense (17th).
Westbrook, who shot just 3-for-12 from the field, finished with 10 rebounds and 13 assists. Westbrook had four of the Lakers’ 17 turnovers, errors resulting in 24 Portland points.
Before the game, Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups defended Westbrook’s game.
“I feel like Russ has gotten a lot of criticism that he shouldn’t get, to be honest with you,” Billups said. “Russ has always been this guy. He is one of the best competitors in this league. He has always shown it. … His competitive fire never changes. He is trying to win every game. But when you play on a team where you don’t have the same usage, if you do, then of course your numbers will look different. And of course some of your mistakes will look stronger, bigger. You’re in LA playing on this team.
“…It’s not just Russ. I’ll just say that. When you look at his team, there are a lot of other things that really contribute to that.”
The Lakers battled one of those issues Wednesday, defending with the right spirit and attitude, things that have eluded them all season.
“It was a great game for us,” Davis said.
Whether they can do it again Thursday against the Clippers is a different matter, shortcomings still easy to spot on a night they won.
www.latimes.com
George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism