Luka Dončić stuffed the stat sheet to the tune of 43 factors, 12 rebounds, 9 assists, two steals and a block on Tuesday, and his Lakers nonetheless misplaced to the Warriors, 119-109, on opening evening as Dončić completed as a minus-eight for the sport.
Placing up numbers like that and nonetheless dropping is deliciously ripe for overreaction in Lakers land. So let’s do it! And let’s begin with the truth that J.J. Redick needed to play Dončić 40 minutes, which isn’t very best in any regular-season sport — not to mention on opening evening — in a league obsessive about load managing its stars’ mileage.
Such is life with out LeBron James, who’s out till no less than mid-November as he offers with this sciatica state of affairs and the Lakers merely haven’t got a lot else to show to on a nightly foundation. Sure, Austin Reaves went for 26, however that is additionally so much to ask of him each evening. And even when he does, in opposition to the great groups, two guys will not be sufficient.
Backside line: You merely can’t depend on two dudes combining for 69 factors, 18 assists and 17 rebounds whereas logging a mixed 76 minutes, particularly when you’re nonetheless dropping the sport. These should not sustainable numbers by any lens.
Past that, there is not any sense in regurgitating the field rating from one sport. Little doubt the Lakers will get extra from the likes of Rui Hachimura and hopefully Gabe Vincent and Deandre Ayton, the latter of whom Lakers followers have spent the summer season convincing themselves can instantly turn out to be a participant he hasn’t been in a half decade.
However, as one-game evals go, Dončić having to go hero mode for 40 minutes simply to remain inside hanging distance is form of a toxic recipe. Will Redick again off his minutes? Can he afford to till LeBron returns?
“Each sport is completely different,” Redick mentioned of Dončić’s workload in opposition to the Warriors. “I am not involved about that.”
Redick is true. Each sport is completely different. Which is why Luka cannot be anticipated to provide at this stage each evening. And he will not need to as quickly as LeBron will get again, proper? That is fascinating. Sooner or later LeBron will not be going to be, you understand, LeBron.
Actually, can the Lakers even depend upon James to pop proper again into All-NBA mode at nearly 41 years outdated and already ailing? Fact is, even when LeBron comes again, he merely cannot be anticipated to play greater than 50 video games at this stage. Possibly he’ll. It is absolutely doable. However when you’re planning realistically, you must be ready to be with out him for a good period of time, and the preliminary returns on his absence weren’t nice.
The upside, in fact, is Luka was nice. He solely made two of his 10 3-pointers, however he was in do-everything mode and, as ordinary, attending to any spot he needed on the ground as he registered the very best scoring output in a season opener for any Lakers participant since Kobe Bryant put 45 on the Rockets to start the 2007-08 marketing campaign.
If Dončić goes to make a run at his first MVP, his case goes to have to start out being inbuilt these early non-LeBron video games as he goals to maintain the Lakers afloat. It is nearly a assure he will put up large stats, however can sufficient of the supporting workers step up their sport to make it matter? Can Redick keep away from the temptation to run Dončić into the bottom? If it will get determined sufficient, he may need to.
Proper now, clearly nothing is determined. It is one sport in opposition to an excellent Warriors workforce, who had been working near full power (Moses Moody and De’Anthony Melton had been out). However it was a glimpse into life with out LeBron, and regardless of how nicely Dončić performed, it wasn’t such a reasonably image for the Lakers.
