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The Los Angeles Lakers were embarrassed in Game 1 and Rajon Rondo is at the root of the problems.
Another Game 1, another smelly Los Angeles Lakers. Throughout the second half, Los Angeles looked flat, discouraged and afraid to attack. His offense was putrid yet again as he missed the 100-point mark for the second time this postseason.
A variety of factors can be attributed to this pathetic offensive production. It can be said that Anthony Davis’ lack of aggressiveness is to blame. His box score numbers look great, 25 points and 14 rebounds, but he could have hurt the Houston Rockets a lot more. He settled for too many jump shots and was clearly annoyed by PJ Tucker’s excellent defense.
Here’s an interesting nugget from that game courtesy of ESPN’s Kirk Goldsberry:
Sure, Tucker is strong as an oak, but Davis is a 6’10 253-pound forward with guard skills. He can get most defenders out of the dribble and is tall enough to hit any Rockets starter (the Rockets’ tallest starter was 6’7). Davis should do a lot more damage in the paint.
Let’s move on to another topic: LeBron James ran out of touchdowns in the fourth quarter. As the leader of this team and as one of the greatest players of all time, LeBron’s passivity in the fourth is simply inexcusable. He made 7 total shots in the second half and only 3 in the fourth.
The best player in the world must lead the way of his team and lead by example. We expect more from him, especially against the Rockets.
Here’s the biggest problem in the game, Frank Vogel’s decision to play Rajon Rondo for 25 minutes. It’s 20 extra minutes in my book. Notably, Rondo hadn’t played in the playoffs as he was recovering from injury and clearly wasn’t on pace.
Rondo finished with 8 points and 1 assist while shooting 3-9 from the field. The backup guard finished -10 and the Rockets were delighted every time he was on the floor. They were hitting him on the perimeter and Houston didn’t even bother to mark him at the three-point line.
Even before his injury, Rondo’s impact on the team was negative. With the former league leader in assists on the court, the Lakers’ offensive rankings ranked 16th in the league. With Rondo off the court, the Lakers offense ranked seventh in the league.
On the other side of the court, Rondo was once again a drag on LA. The team ranked ninth in defense with him on the court and with Rondo off the court, he ranked third. Rajon Rondo is a negative player on both ends of the court.
But my main problem with Rondo’s heavy workload is the fact that it took minutes away from the great men of Los Angeles. The purple and gold size is his main advantage in this series but for some reason he decided to go less.
Javale McGee only played 13 minutes and Dwight Howard watched the court for 11 minutes of action. What were the consequences? The Rockets and Lakers had 41 rebounds. I wrote about how important rebounding was to the Lakers’ title hunt.
Having just 41 rebounds against a team that allows your opponent to grab 48.8 per game in the playoffs is inexcusable. Those are the consequences of not playing great men enough. The Los Angeles Lakers are averaging 46 rebounds per game in the playoffs and did not take advantage of their size superiority.
Overall, I think the Los Angeles Lakers will be fine. I hope they make adjustments and come to their senses about their size advantage over these Rockets. And for the love of everything, don’t play Rondo for more than 10 minutes. Please.
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