Lakers vs Suns Preseason Preview and Game Thread: Is this team worse than last year?
The Lakers’ preseason stint thus far has given us more questions than answers regarding the state of the team
After losing to the Golden State Warriors in Las Vegas, the Lakers will travel to Phoenix to face the Suns on Thursday. This will be their fifth and second to the last preseason game.
Start time and TV schedule
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns
When: 7 p.m. PT, Oct 17
Where: Footprint Center
Watch: TNT, Spectrum SportsNet
Yes, I know, my headline comes off as a little too aggressive and melancholic, but that’s exactly how I felt after the Lakers lost another preseason game.
Tuesday’s defeat was a little more annoying than usual because it was against the Warriors (who likes losing to them?) and two, losing the way they did, it felt like we were brought back to last season.
Yes, I’m probably overreacting right now because it’s the preseason but like what I said in my preview last week, that doesn’t mean we can’t take away key pointers from each game.
The Lakers’ most recent performance yielded more questions than signs of encouragement about whether or not they will thrive this year. I think those questions are worth listing down, with the regular season beginning next week.
Is D’Angelo Russell going to wait till the trade deadline to pop off?
Russell, who posted just six points against the Warriors in 30 minutes, had the worst performance among the starters. D’Lo shot just 2-10 from the field, which is bad news on a night when even LeBron James was struggling and scored just six points as well.
I’m worried about D’Lo right now because, as we witnessed last season, the purple and gold rely heavily on his scoring to succeed. He hasn’t made his presence felt this preseason and that needs to change as soon as the regular season starts.
Maybe Russell is understandably easing himself into the season, but it would be nice to see him have one of those moments where he goes on a heater in the next two games.
Is the Lakers’ defense non-existent without AD?
When Davis checked out at the 1:24 minute of the first period Tuesday night, the score was 27-26 Lakers.
Then, by the time AD checked back in at the 7:07 mark of the second quarter, the score escalated to 43-35 Warriors. In a span of eight minutes without Davis’ defense on the floor, L.A. gave up 16 points to a Warriors team that struggled to put points on the board.
Again, I know I must keep reminding myself that it is preseason, but this was still eye-opening, especially since we saw the Lakers crumble often when AD wasn’t on the floor last season.
JJ Redick said the Lakers lost the game because of their off-ball defense, which possibly also reflects the team’s lack of valuable defenders.
JJ Redick pointed to the Lakers’ off-ball coverages as one of their primary struggles tonight. He said when the team followed its pregame instructions, they were successful. When they didn’t, the Warriors made them pay.
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) October 16, 2024
“When we made stuff up, they hurt us,” Redick said.
How the Lakers will improve defensively is something to monitor in the next two games.
Is the Lakers bench going to be good enough?
When Taurean Prince started in 49 games last season, Rui Hachimura often came off the bench, followed by Jarred Vanderbilt and then Jaxson Hayes.
Los Angeles’ reserves ranked 28th in the league in bench points last season, only slightly better than non-playoff teams like the Chicago Bulls.
In Tuesday’s loss to the Warriors, the Lakers’ bench struggled again. Rookie Dalton Knecht scored 19 of the bench’s 33 points, but most of those baskets came in the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach.
In the preseason, the Lakers rank 28th in bench scoring. This was a clear weakness for the Lakers on Tuesday and one of the reasons they failed to score 100 points in the contest.
Seeing Buddy Hield and Kyle Anderson be impactful players off the bench for the Warriors puts pressure on Max Chrsitie, Gabe Vincent, Cam Reddish and even Jalen Hood-Schifino to produce. Perhaps one of the biggest questions ahead of the season is whether or not this Lakers bench is good enough.
Hopefully, the Lakers will find answers to these questions by the time the regular season comes.
For now, though, we’ll let the overreactions continue when the Lakers take on the Suns on Thursday.
Notes and Updates
- Thursday’s game against the Suns will be the first night of a back-to-back as the Lakers fly to San Francisco right after to take on the Warriors on Friday. It’s fair to assume that Davis and James might just play in one of these two games.
- Jarred Vanderbilt (foot surgery), Christian Wood (knee surgery) and Christian Koloko (not cleared by NBA protocols) will all likely sit out for both games.
- We will be live on Playback for this game, so be sure to join us!
You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.