Lakers vs. Clippers Preview: Possible final time as a road team at Crypto.com Arena
The Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, who have shared the same arena for decades, could meet for the last time at Crypto.com Arena, with the former being the road team. Barring a playoff game, the Clippers will next host the Lakers at the new Intuit Dome in Inglewood. This matchup has been an interesting cross-town rivalry over the years, but in recent memory the Clippers owned the purple and gold during the regular season.
The Clippers have already won 11 straight against the Lakers, and LeBron James and Anthony Davis were able to win their first two games of the season. The Lakers played without James on Jan. 23, the last time the two sides met, with the Clippers winning 127-116.
James and Davis will be available for the deciding final game of the season after Sunday’s disappointing loss to the Phoenix Suns.
The opposing team will be without Paul George, who is recovering from a knee injury, and starting center Ivica Zubac, who is battling illness. With two Clippers starters out, the game will be less entertaining, but the Lakers will have a better chance of pulling off a come-from-behind victory.
In their last matchup, Los Angeles was on the offensive end and couldn’t stop the game against the Clippers. Without George, the focus will shift to James Harden and Kawhi Leonard running the offense. However, limiting role players like Norman Powell, Terrence Mann and Russell Westbrook may be more important for the Lakers as it limits their offense.
The Clippers are a team that excels at 3-point shooting, making 14 of 27 (51.9%) in their last game, so controlling the 3-point line will be key.
Another key for the Lakers is ending defensive possessions with rebounds after being killed off by the Suns’ offense. Limiting second chance opportunities is very important and will require group work with Davis.
Austin Reeves doesn’t think Anthony Davis will have a ‘terrible’ game because of his defensive shooting
Coming off the All-Star break, the Los Angeles Lakers are generating momentum for a possible exit from the play-in tournament. It all starts with Anthony Davis, and his play greatly improves the team, especially on the defensive side of the field where he is the anchor of the team.
Los Angeles is currently ahead of the Lakers in the standings and has a key matchup against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday afternoon. The Lakers still hold the tiebreaker against the Suns after a win earlier this year, but ultimately lost the fifth and final Game 5, 123-113, missing an opportunity to regain ground.
One of the reasons for the loss was Davis’ slow start to attack in the first half. He scored just four points and found his rhythm in the final 24 minutes, leaving the Lakers’ offense behind. Austin Reeves defended his teammate’s slow start, as Davis’ impact extends beyond the stat sheet. “A lot of times people want to criticize AD, saying he played poorly, saying he got off to a slow start, but statistically it was clearly a slow start for him,” Reaves said. Ta. “But what he needs on the pitch is attentiveness and defensive effort when shooting. Regardless of what the stats say, I honestly don’t think it’s possible for AD to have a terrible first half or game because he means so much to us defensively. . But I think we did a better job of finding him and getting him into a rhythm, that’s all.
This criticism is not new, as Davis has been dealing with outside noise since being traded to the Lakers. Much of that is due to his injury and inability to stay on the court, but part of the checkered play is new criticism of the center heard late last season.
But this may be the Chicago native’s best season since the purple and gold began. Reaves knows what the big man brings to the table on a daily basis, so it’s hard to put the blame for this loss entirely on Davis, who has been very consistent all season.
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