Trailblazers vs Lakers - Game Recap

Last night the Trailblazers visited Los Angeles to take on the Lakers in their first game back after the New Year. The Lakers are looking to turn a corner and leave their mediocre play in 2024, while Portland is most likely on its way to the lottery. Los Angeles was missing Anthony Davis but there’s this 40 year old on their team, I can’t quite remember his name (wink), who put on quite a show in Davis’ absence. 

The Lakers got off to a slow start shooting the ball which seems to be a recurring theme in their games. Austin Reaves in particular had a rough night from the field but man has he really stepped up as a distributor, tallying a career high 9 assists in the first half. Portland kept it tight and led for a decent chunk of the first half. Shaedon Sharpe always seems to play well against LA and he continued that in the first 24 minutes of game time. Portland led by seven with about 7 minutes left in the half, but the Lakers woke up and started to play the game how they wanted to, get stops and get out in transition. LeBron off a defensive rebound on the break is a scary sight because he can still beat you in so many ways, even at 40 years old. He can take it himself hitting that same spin move in the lane that we've seen for years which seems impossible to stop, or he can create for his teammates making the right pass just about every time. LA would close out the half on a 24-8 run leading by nine at the break. Not only was LeBron getting downhill but he was highly successful from behind the arch. I’ll always wince when I see him shoot threes because there will be nights where they just aren’t falling and he’ll continue to shoot them, but last night was not the case. 

Although I have more to say about LeBron, Max Christie has to be talked about. If you were on the fence about him being a starter even after seeing how well he played in the month of December, this game was the icing on the cake for him. He had career highs in points (28), field goals made, and three pointers made. He is one of those guys who always puts himself in the right position when he’s off the ball. This is especially effective when you play next to guys like LeBron and, as of late, Reaves who will find you for easy baskets. Christie knocked down a handful of threes in big spots, keeping the momentum on LA’s side when it seemed like Portland had a little juice. What I like about Christie the most is his defensive ability. His intense pressure on ball handlers is a huge advantage for the Lakers, especially with Reddish on the floor at the same time. Defense has been a major issue for this team all year (21st in def. rating) and Christie is a guy who can change that when he’s playing a larger role. 

This was also LA’s second game after they traded D’Angelo Russell back to Brooklyn for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton. Both haven’t played particularly well yet, but I think they should have a grace period to adjust to their new team before we really hammer them on their performance. I expect Finney-Smith to be more important to this team’s success due to his shooting and size on the defensive end. I like what Milton has to offer as a ball handler but I don’t see him getting a ton of minutes rest of season. Overall I like the trade for the Lakers, as much as I am a fan of D’Angelo Russell's game I think Finney-Smith and Milton are more of what the Lakers need in terms of size and shooting. Russell is a great scorer but man can he not defend a lick.

The second half was pretty much all Lakers up until the last four or five minutes of the game where Portland made things interesting. The Lakers got sloppy defensively especially in transition which is a common theme for this team. The Lakers’ broadcasters mentioned how this team gets worse defensively as the game goes on and unfortunately they’re right. The Lakers held on to win due to a vintage LeBron performance. I know there are a lot of LeBron naysayers out there but I find it impossible to not appreciate what he is doing at this age because it has quite literally never been done before. I don’t think this is a championship team or even a Western Conference Finals team, but they have the talent to avoid the Play-In and be the 6th seed in the West. The defensive woes have to change ASAP or my outlook on this team will change.