Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers - Reaves Hits Rock Bottom as Lakers Lose Game 1, 108-90

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Lakers lose game one in Oklahoma City by 18. What can they fix between game one and game two? It starts with Austin Reeves. That is next. You are locked on Lakers. Your daily Los Angeles Lakers podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. Thanks to everybody for joining Locked on Lakers.

Starting point is 00:00:30 Brian Komenetsky, Andy Kamenetsky, game one, Andy goes to the Oklahoma City Thunder. No real surprise there. Final score, 108 to 90, not necessarily a game where the Lakers controlled any of it. This kind of was what it was and was what people were expecting. I want to let people know that today's episode is brought to you by Fanduel. Right now, new customers can bet just $5 and get $150 in bonus bets if your first bet wins at theFandual.com to get started.

Starting point is 00:01:02 The flip side, of course, Andy, is actually we'll get to Austin Reeves in a second. But save Austin Reeves, who was awful in this game. I didn't think the Lakers played that poorly. Like, you know, I didn't think they weren't at their best. I think they can do better. But for certainly through the first half and from I thought much of the second, I thought they were playing okay. I think this series, this game demonstrated to me the obstacles that the

Starting point is 00:01:36 are facing against Oklahoma City. Yeah, I thought they played fairly well in the first half. I thought the second half was a serious mixed bag, very up and down. But in the first half, I believe they finished down eight, but I thought they made some really good things happen. They forced She Gilges Alexander. I want to say into five turnovers in the first half, four or five, very uncharacteristic for Shea.

Starting point is 00:02:01 I thought they were doing a good job swarming him, making it difficult for him to give up the ball. There was a sequence where LeBron got a pick six dunk after they had done a really good job doubling him high. I thought in the first half in particular offensively they were doing a good job moving without the ball, using a lot of motion, putting LeBron in positions where he could be in the post. And especially, LeBron had a good game, like just period, 27.66. this, but his first half in particular was very good. I thought they were doing a good job getting D'Andre Aiton opportunities in the lane.

Starting point is 00:02:41 Rui had some nice plays on either baseline cuts or stuff like that. I thought they were doing a good job attacking in some of the spaces where they were looking to try to find vulnerabilities like OKC in particular. is, I mean, they're pretty good at defending everywhere, but one of their relatively weaker areas defending is the mid-range where the Lakers have some guys who can do some damage. And I thought, again, they were down by 8. It was not perfect.

Starting point is 00:03:14 And this is a theme that's going to come up a lot over the course of this series. The Lakers have no margin for error. So pretty good ain't going to cut it. But I think... They need to play over their heads to say, right. But, but relatively,

Starting point is 00:03:27 to what is reasonable and relative to just grading on scale, are they playing well? I thought on balance they played pretty well in the first half. The second half, a lot just fell more apart. I think more of the weaknesses really began shining through. And we're going to talk about it. Austin was a disaster in this game. Yeah, historic disaster, as it turns out. Yeah, I think one of the things that this is not.

Starting point is 00:03:57 This is not intended to downplay the work that LeBron did in this game. He was easily the best Laker, and he was the reason in large part that they were within striking distance at halftime in particular. And you mentioned the final line there with 27 points. He had six assists. He only had two turnovers. The Lakers turned the ball over 17 times. LeBron, again, only had two of those despite obviously. being on the ball and having a lot of responsibility there.

Starting point is 00:04:30 The one thing LeBron couldn't do, three of his six three-pointers, and this is illustrative of the problems the Lakers were having offensively, and particularly the problems that Austin was having offensively. The Lakers only got to the line 13 times. Four of them were from Luke Conard, of all people, got filed on a three, and so that was part of that. But it took, like, I'll put it, it this way. Oklahoma City had, you know,

Starting point is 00:05:01 LeBron was L.A.'s best offensive player. Rui was their second. But LeBron was their best offensive player. He had 27 points. He needed 17 shots to get there. Like that's a ratio that they could deal with. It's very efficient for Oklahoma City, but it's all from the floor. There's nothing from the line. And so if they're going to make, if LeBron going to get to 25, 30, 35 points, but it's going to be all based on field goal attempts.

Starting point is 00:05:33 I think they'll take that. And then you turn around and we'll get to, you know, obviously the problems Austin had on an individual level. But that was a theme for the Lakers entirely. Like the Thunder, and I actually thought legitimately, not like the Thunder don't foul kind of thing. When the Lakers got inside, I think Thunder did a really nice job of not fouling. Most of their files came with ball pressure more on the perimeter. The Lakers have to figure out a way to either get to the line or generate easier points,

Starting point is 00:06:08 whether it's in transition or something else, because the three-point volume wasn't there either. You can't sustain yourself against Oklahoma City with 10 free throws and 10 three-pointers. That's just not good. I'm actually going to disagree with you slightly on this. it's not either or it has to be both. Both, yeah, sure.

Starting point is 00:06:29 It's going to really need to be both because case and point, the Lakers did not shoot a ton of free throws in this game, but neither than the Thunder. The Lakers actually shot one more free throw than the Thunder. Like this was not a game where Shea was living at the line. He only took three trips to the stripe. As you mentioned, Luke Conard, a known free throw merchant. He got four of them.

Starting point is 00:06:58 So, like, I'm tired of watching Luke Canard free throw grift for foul. Like, exactly. I mean, Adam Silver, one of the many reasons he's a weak-ass commissioners. He's just let Luke Conard run roughshot over this league. It's high time that he just, like, grew a pair and did something about this.

Starting point is 00:07:18 But like, the Lakers lost by almost 20 points. And you can't even look at, the Thunder A, living at the line, which reputationally, if nothing else they do, or frankly, the Thunder putting up a massive number to begin with. They scored 108 points, which is, I want to say 14 below their season average, and I want to say 15 below what they averaged in the sweep against the Suns. And the Lakers still fell almost 20 points short.

Starting point is 00:07:50 So the approach to offense for them in this game, like in terms of what do they need more of? The answer is going to be all of the above. And LeBron, after the game, was asked about where the offensive issues begin. And just so it's clear, he acknowledged better execution, got to find other things do, yada, yada. But we're missing a guy that averages 33 points a game. Like that is a really big problem for your offense. And then, you know, when you compound the issues that Austin Reeves has had since returning from injury, you know, and whatever. But a 33 point hole is a big one to fill.

Starting point is 00:08:37 And the Lakers- Against the best defense of the league. Right. Yeah, which LeBron also pointed out. Like, that's a big problem anyway. Like we saw how much the Lakers had issues with it against the rockets. And they're a good defense, but respectfully, they ain't the thunder. They're nowhere close to the thunder. They're not.

Starting point is 00:08:55 And, you know, I think that's, it's all relative because like we all understand, like, Lakers fans understood what this could look like. I mean, I think you want a team that's going to try to play hard. I mean, and they did. I think they, you know, they put in the effort. They didn't, you know, Marcus Smart always tries. It was not, you know, I didn't think it was a very good game. overall for for smart but like there were some individual plays in ostens but it was just it was

Starting point is 00:09:22 just not a good game for what they needed out of smart it's got to be better they all do but like everybody understands what the deal is here aside from just like putting reeves in a microscope for really not really about this series but for his future and what you think about it in los angeles And certainly this game didn't make that any less controversial. Nobody's really expecting the Lakers to win this series. But if you are somebody who's certainly not after 20. Less so now. I mean, like we've all seen like to win like $100 in Vegas right now or on Fandul

Starting point is 00:10:09 or any of these other places, like to. on the thunder to win the series, you got to bet like $36,000 to win like a hundred. It's really not making your money work for you. It's no. It's not put it put it in a in a in a CD or something like that. You'll earn better interest. Or because we're going to hear from them with Fandall. Right.

Starting point is 00:10:33 Just in a better way. It's a low it's a low interest loan to Fandall at that point. Betting on all of them. Yeah, the yield is going to be low. It's, if you're, the problem with this game is you can point to three or four or five things. The Lakers could definitely do better, even though they weren't a disaster. They could do things better. There's no question.

Starting point is 00:10:56 The problems, you don't look at this and say, man, the thunder were on it. Like, they looked good in this game. Like the thunder, this was not, I've not watched the Thunder play 30 times this year, but I've watched them play enough. Like, they were fine. this wasn't anything special from Oklahoma City. So I can't imagine. Shea Gildj Alexander had seven turnovers in this game.

Starting point is 00:11:20 I bet you've got to look through a lot of game logs to find the last time he had seven. I'm not sure he has. He goes weeks without seven sometimes. That's what I'm saying. Yeah. All right. Let's talk about Austin Reeves. Because it was bad.

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Starting point is 00:14:00 According to ESPN Insights, Austin Reeves's 18.8 field goal percentage in game one was the lowest by any Laker in a playoff game over the last 35 years. anyone with a minimum 15 field goal attempts. He was three of 16 from the floor. He should have held off a couple of just a couple of shots and everyone would be off his ass. Two of the makes. Historically at least.

Starting point is 00:14:26 Later in the fourth quarter, obviously not consequential for turning the game around. He was bad. You know, what was annoying, particularly, one of the things that was particularly annoying about it too is like I guess maybe you could look at this as somewhat encouraging

Starting point is 00:14:47 trying to go forward. He got into the paint. It wasn't entirely that he couldn't like turn the corner and get into the paint and do some stuff particularly early. He was moving Oklahoma City's defense. But my God, man,

Starting point is 00:15:04 like the empty shots are are deep. deeply problematic. And, you know, if you're going to go back to that first game that he played against Houston, four of 16 from a four, but he made it the line 13 times. In this game, he made it twice. And then, you know, when you have more turnovers than field goals, you are not playing well.

Starting point is 00:15:26 No. We've also talked about, too, like he's, it's now his third game back from this oblique injury. And he is struggling to make shots, like just period. There's no way around this. Hard ones, easy ones, all of them. But also from all over the court. His jumper isn't falling, whether in the mid-range area, whether long twos, threes, he is not finishing at all. And he looks out of sorts with this.

Starting point is 00:16:02 And it's also, I think, leading to avoidable turnovers. This is the type of team. that we talked about this actually heading into the series that could speed up Austin, who I think, you know, that's one of his weaknesses, as he often can either get sped up,

Starting point is 00:16:19 sometimes speeds himself up or both. This is a team that is primed to do that to Austin. And I know, like they were talking about the spectrum sports net post game. Like it's only the third game back. LeBron was, you know, giving Austin some grace.

Starting point is 00:16:38 and the idea that he missed a month. And after you miss a month, you know, LeBron would know after his timeout with sciatica and then coming back, I believe it was game 15. It took him a little while. The problem is the Lakers don't have a little while.

Starting point is 00:16:52 Like they do not have the luxury of affording Austin time to work his way through it. And it's also been enough games where you just feel like by now, if particularly against a team, and this is the other problem right now that that feels worrisome, this is a team that Austin has struggled against anyway this season. His splits against the thunder are awful this year. And, you know, they're varying circumstances. Luca missed the game.

Starting point is 00:17:27 No, but really, you know. They're bad. And this is the type of team that if you were, If you were going to create a defense that would specifically give Austin Reeves issues, and frankly, the best defenses around the league, the one that you have to go through to win championships are a lot like this. This is the type of defense type of defenders. And he just, he doesn't just has to be better.

Starting point is 00:18:00 He has to be much better. Otherwise, frankly, the offense won't function. It simply will not function if he's not better. And like I said, there was a third quarter. And I do think JJ is going to need to tweak the rotation a little bit, the timing of substitutions a little bit. Like there is a stretch where both smart and LeBron were off the floor. And Austin was the only ball.

Starting point is 00:18:28 Really, I mean, I don't count Conard as a ball handler really against a team like the Thunder. like he can do secondary stuff, but he's not triggering your offense and all that kind of stuff. Austin was really the only ball handle on the floor, while both Caruso and Case and Wallace were there. And they were just beating up on him because there wasn't anybody, like there wasn't a lot of help there. And so like there are moments where you can look at it and say,

Starting point is 00:18:54 this is a, this is a sort of disadvantageous situation you're in. No, but I'm not. I'm not here. I'm not here. I'm not here. But like this is, but like you, you have to at the very least be able to work your way through that stuff. And in the times when you do have guys on the floor, when you are expected as a team to make the offense work better, they're, you know, throughout every game, they're treading water minutes.

Starting point is 00:19:30 and there are like make moves minutes. And Austin was bad in both when he had the opportunities to get into the paint and make shots or open threes that needs to go in against a team like Oklahoma City. They didn't happen. And so you can't just look at the minutes where it's like, okay, well, what do you want him to do

Starting point is 00:19:56 against that defense? Because he was bad in the other minutes too. But here's the problem, though, with what you're saying. And I understand what you mean. The problem is there are no points where you can't have Austin out on the floor against high-end defenders because that's the whole Thunder team. Like there's not that he's out, when they're, when he's the only person by him, he was handling the ball. No, but there are. There's no other way to.

Starting point is 00:20:26 You can let me finish now. unless LeBron is going to play 48 minutes, you cannot come up with a scenario where there is, at least theoretically, a ball handler of Austin's level out there with him. There is no combination. Unless LeBron's going to play 48 minutes. You have the three of smart LeBron and Austin on the floor, I think, as much as you possibly can. That's what I'm talking about. That's too low of a – if you want to have Marcus out there with Austin, whatever. Marcus is an adventure handling the ball anyway.

Starting point is 00:21:01 This is what Austin's supposed to be able to do. If he can't do this, then he's not the player that the Lakers need right now. And you can start arguing about what may be. Like, he has to be able to handle five minutes on the court as the number one primary ball handler against this defense. Otherwise, it will not function. Right. period. The offense,

Starting point is 00:21:26 when those guys are off the floor and you have who the Lakers have in available to them, I think it was Jackson as well. It wasn't even Ait. Like there's a limit as to how much you're going to be able to function with that offense, with the personnel that you have on the floor. And

Starting point is 00:21:42 it's like, can you figure out a way to sort of tread water? That, those aren't even the parts of this where I look at Austin as most disappointing. It's the times when the stuff, when the stuff is there and you are able to.

Starting point is 00:22:01 And so like, that's the stuff that if he's, you know, what did he finish? Three of 16. If he's eight of 16 or nine of 16, most of that eight or nine is going to come first quarter, fourth quarter, whatever it is when they have their best lineups out on the floor. He wasn't.

Starting point is 00:22:28 Like that's, I mean, like, the, the, the, the, the disappointing things for me about in this game with Austin is that he couldn't perform even when the circumstances were more favorable for him to do it. That's the stuff that you just look at and you say, that cannot possibly be what your sort of baseline is over the course of this series. No, absolutely. I mean, he needed to be better when he, when he was on the court in whatever scenario period. All I'm saying is the idea of protecting him to some degree. It's not about protecting him. It's just a matter of when you, none of this is about,

Starting point is 00:23:11 you have to protect Austin. It's a matter of, I'm just looking at the personnel on the floor going, What do I reasonably expect to happen with the offensive talent that they have on the floor against that defensive lineup? And he's got to be able to handle. What does handle mean, though? And I don't want to actually, let's take it. Let's talk about it after the break. Well, after the break or later, because I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to get into a conversation that turns into trying to defend what Austin did on. I don't think you're trying to defend it.

Starting point is 00:23:45 I don't think you're trying to defend it, just so it's clear. I don't. But I think what you're talking about is not possible the way I understand it. It's not possible in this series without Luca and with whoever else is available to handle the ball. Like, Austin's supposed to be the second best player on this team and one of the primary generators of offense. And nobody else besides LeBron is. Like, if he can't do that, then LeBron has to play 48 minutes. Let's pick it up after the break.

Starting point is 00:24:18 You also got to mention Vando, too, by the way. Yes. That was unpleasant. So plenty more to things to discuss after the break. Locked on Lakers is brought you by Fanduel. The NBA playoffs are here and every position matters. Oh, yeah, they really do. If you're looking to get closer to the action,

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Starting point is 00:25:17 And as of this recording, according to our friends at Fandul, the Lakers remain 15 and a half point underdogs in game two. Head to fandul.com to get started. Fandual, play your game. Lockton Lakers also brought to by Quo, Miss Calls, Slow follow-ups, or Silent Killers for Businesses. That's how money gets left in the table without even people realizing it. That's why today's episode is also brought you by Quo.

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Starting point is 00:27:20 Lakers have. I am I need I'm willing to give the Lakers a pass in some of the like they're this can be hard for them to score period this the the the the parts if you're looking for anything to be sort of encouraged by it's not that he couldn't get shots it's that he couldn't get them to fall there were only a couple where I thought you know what Oklahoma City is just really bullying him out of you know his space it's he's not able to get a shot. They got him into the paint, particularly in the first half.

Starting point is 00:27:56 He got there. And he set up some plays and he made some, you know, it was a Jackson Hayes follow of a play where he sucked in three guys and it's an easy cleanup for Hayes. There were a couple of plays like that over the course of the game. But you can't be a number one option, a number one A,

Starting point is 00:28:18 even a number two in a series like this and miss as many shots as Austin has been missing over the last three games since he came back from injury. You can't miss as many. No, you can't miss as many. And I agree that it wasn't necessarily the Thunder's physical nature,

Starting point is 00:28:36 specifically that was causing these misses. But I do think the way they were defending him as the game went along, some of these misses were not even so much thunder physicality or whatever. Is Austin growing frustrated? I think there are, few shots he put up that frankly were kind of desperate.

Starting point is 00:28:51 I think he was in it. I think he's deep into his own head. Right. Which I mean, again, these are the type of defenses that create skepticism for Austin and or from from fans. About all for sure. About Austin. I mean, look, I said many times over the last few years, I think Austin is a really good player. I think he's very good. Full stop. I don't. I don't. I have questions at the very least about whether or not Austin is as good as the Lakers have increasingly stationed him to be.

Starting point is 00:29:27 Not because I don't think Austin is good. It's because the type of player that they seem to have earmarked Austin to be is really effing good. Like it is really hard to be. I mean, frankly, it's hard to be the third option, third best player, however you you want to put this on a contending team. Like that is really difficult. much less the second best player.

Starting point is 00:29:50 I think fans and even media often underrate how difficult it is to be that player. How good you have to be. Think about recent championship teams and how good the consensus third best player on those teams typically are. And in this particular series, even if you think Austin could be a quality third best player on a team, and I think that's possible. He's now been elevated at a station that I have expressed doubts about whether or not he can do that. But the point being, there aren't going to be a lot of ways, given who's missing and the skill sets of who's available to work around some of these issues. He's just going to have to do better.

Starting point is 00:30:41 And that's more of what I was getting at, the idea of like, if you want to put, like, say, Marcus out there, or whatever with as an example with Austin okay i don't think it would have made a difference tonight he was completely out of sorts and i think he would have struggled regardless and that that's my larger point yeah my my only point was just yeah it might make it just a little difference in how you can trigger an offense and run it and how the thunder might have defended how how how over you know over how much you could totally overplay reeves and whatever but you're right i mean the way that's particularly the way that smart played it wouldn't have right i mean because then all i do want to remind people quickly about it

Starting point is 00:31:23 well i was just to say i do want to remind people the uh about the everyday air club uh locked on leakers dot supercast dot com and you can check it out see if it's for you five bucks a month 50 bucks a year you get the show without commercials plus a chance to join the discord chat talk with other lakers fans about what the lakers might be able to do against the thunder talk to us, talk to other hosts and other fans, see if it's for you. The part, though, that I think is intriguing here is what you were alluding to a second ago, Andy, how much of this is, you know, Austin's, you know, what Oklahoma City was doing versus how much of this is just Austin's brain after three games of not being able to shoot? He didn't play a bad game six,

Starting point is 00:32:15 but he didn't light the world on fire either. And that game six was light years better than what we saw in game one on Tuesday. Even game one, the game five performance against Houston was significantly better overall than this one. Yeah, they just, if Austin does not pick up his level dramatically, then for the Lakers to even try to extend this, series to five games, six games, you know, much less try to pull off what would be, you know,

Starting point is 00:32:47 from the odds makers, a historical upset, then it's going to require Rui and DeAndre Aiton and smart and all these other guys to, you know, occupy a station that they are not only aren't, I think, capable of playing at. They're not supposed to be. Like, you know, it's not. It's a non, it's a non, you can get a game like that out of one or two or three, like maybe, you know, over the course of a series. But no, there is no construction. You are correct, where the Lakers make a series out of this. And Austin Reeves plays poorly.

Starting point is 00:33:27 Those two things are not compatible. Ruey had a very, I think, solid efficient 18 points. He hit three-threes. DeAndre Aynne had- I thought Ruey was very good. Yeah, Ruey was very good. Aiton, I think he got constrained. a little bit with some foul trouble.

Starting point is 00:33:43 He checked out pretty early in the third. But, you know, he had a double double, not a particularly prolific one, but a double double. Jackson Hayes had some moments. I think it's unfortunate. Maybe we'll talk about this more in the bonus show. But Jared Vanderbilt's injury, he had what was Sham Shiraniah from ESPN reporting, a full dislocation of his right pinky finger.

Starting point is 00:34:12 sources tell ESPN. I think you have too. I know I have dislocated a finger before. I have no idea like what qualifies as full dislocation versus regular dislocation. They didn't pop that sucker back in and send them out. That's for sure. No, I was going to say they did not do that. The Thunderbench caught a glimpse of what Vando's hand looked at.

Starting point is 00:34:38 I think there was bone. I believe there was a little bit of bone sticking out. thing is too when you not a doctor but my understanding this was against the backboard by the way he was trying to block the layup and hit the backboard you when you when you dislocate something that badly i think it tears ligaments so i'd be i suspect i mean there's a pain tolerance issue here um it is at least possible vando not being a serious ball handler and let's be honest i don't think this is going to affect his shot uh all that much um it wasn't shooting it was a It was his shooting hand.

Starting point is 00:35:13 No, it was his right hand. Oh, it was. Okay. Right. That's what I'm saying. It's not better if it's shot at all. Well. How much works at his guide hand pick?

Starting point is 00:35:21 That's my point. Either way, it wasn't, the joke there was, you break both pinkies. I don't think it would matter that much. But I think there's a good chance he's going to miss real time with this. Maybe he can play through the pain. You just tape them all together since he's not doing it. But then you're playing.

Starting point is 00:35:38 You're truly playing four on five at that point. That was a pretty, that was pretty gross when that happened. I did see one, and you got to be careful on, on Twitter, social media. I saw somebody tweeted out the news about Jared Vanderbilt fully dislocating his pinky, but they used like a stock photo where Vando had his hand kind of like curled up. And it literally looked like his pinky was dislocated in the sense that it was no longer located on his hand. So that one frightened me for a second. It was like, that can't be the real photo.

Starting point is 00:36:14 But a thin Lakers team gets thinner. Well, this is if Vanderbilt play. I was going to say maybe this is something we could talk about for the bonus show. But Vando's injury creates a potential ripple effect for the lower part of the rotation that I'm not sure how JJ wants to try to address it. because his options are looking grim. It is, I think, fair to say. Jake Laravia did not step into the moment. And moving up and down the bench, again, the options are limited.

Starting point is 00:36:56 Man, I knew we needed Drew Timmy. All right. Locked on Lakers on YouTube is ready to go hang out with over 38,000 subscribers to the channel. We'll be back a little later on Wednesday. And, of course, get you ready for Thursdays. Game two, as LeBron said, it's only one game. You're down one nothing if you lose by 18 or if you lose by one. Doesn't matter.

Starting point is 00:37:16 So we'll see what the Lakers can come up with in game two. And we'll see everyone next time.

Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers - Reaves Hits Rock Bottom as Lakers Lose Game 1, 108-90

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