5 Things: Nuggets end Lakers win streak at 5

While maybe not surprising in that very few Lakers were healthy enough to play in this contest, the loss to Denver means the Lakers come to the halfway point of the season at 19-22. Not many games separate them from this or that seeding, which is good. The Lakers haven’t been very healthy this season and seemingly can’t depend on much of the roster being available on a game-to-game basis.

1. Too few healthy bodies. We don’t need to overly dump on the team after the loss to Denver. Jokic cruised to an easy triple-double, we competed hard but Denver just has too much firepower for us to keep up with. Solid games from Russ, Nunn and TB. Dennis did not have a great game, supporting cast isn’t enough to contend with the juggernaut that is Denver this season. They are going to be dangerous in the playoffs.
2. Wenyan Gabriel has perfected his role on this team. I am really loving the energy and enthusiasm Wenyan brings from last season to this Wenyan has carved out a nice little niche on the Lakers. Out of the league the Los Angeles AARP, er…Lakers, of last season desperately needed youth and energy on a team built on aged legs. Enter Wenyan Gabriel who didn’t really “wow” anyone but played hard and did what was asked. This season he has shown that he can take and make the open corner three that they leave him open for. His rebounding and hustle can change the dynamics of a game and he pairs great with Russ and LeBron because he’s willing, like Thomas Bryant, to do the dirty work.
3. The defense has completely fallen off without AD. That was, to a degree, to be expected, but the general slide back to 19th in defensive efficiency has coincided with LeBron playing out of his mind to mask the porous D. No LeBron, Lakers give up 122 and only score 109. In general the Lakers have been getting by forcing the pace and scoring in the paint all season long. When AD comes back we’ll see how that impacts that end because it’s unlikely the Lakers can just score their way through multiple 7 game series.
4. Max Christie played great. The rookie had a pretty complete game after being thrust into the starting five due to injuries. Max had that jump shot working and canned 2-3 from three, 6-8 overall. His defense was decent and he filled in ably, as one would hope, going to be hard for him to get floor time when the medical unit empties out so it’s nice to see him showcase himself a bit.
5. What the Lakers need to do to close out the season strong. Get and stay healthy. That’ll take care of a lot of issues if AD, LeBron and Russ can all stay on the floor and produce for most of the rest of the season. Since getting back in the rotation Nunn has shown he has something left in the tank. The Lakers could still package Nunn and the inconsistent and underwhelming PatBev for a player or two of impact. With the news that Sarver has veto power still, for some reason, on any Jae Crowder trade I doubt he comes to us (in-division and conference rivals don’t generally help each other out, either). We need a play like that, though. I don’t think we have the chutzpah to get in on the potential O.G. sweepstakes or players of that caliber, we’ll need to focus on lower hanging fruit which will be players with a more one-dimensional skillset. That could be Eric Gordon or someone like that. Oft-injured, stats trending down as they age, wants to compete for something.

If we make the playoffs, maybe even just the playin, and Russ continues as he has been I don’t see another serious 6th man of the year candidate. If AD comes back, and more importantly stays back, and we make the actual playoffs I can see him and LeBron as potential MVPs and AD as a potential DPOY. The west is that wide open and in that much chaos. Unexpectedly but that is exactly why they play the games. All the meaningless predictions and polls have to be put to the fire of reality. As a result the Lakers aren’t in a hole so deep there is no hope. They just need to get the best players back and playing consistently and they have a legit shot at something I did not think was at all possible when the season kicked off: a playoff berth. Not a playin, a true playoff spot. Here’s hoping the trends we’ve seen since the 2-10 start are what this team is truly capable of.