Aloha,
Another winnable game down the drain. We have left so many wins on the table that if we don’t make even the play in, it will be as much on the team as as the broken roster Rob assembled.
It’s clear that the league has caught up to our defense. We are so undersized now that teams just take our tiny guys into the paint and shoot over them. This actually started before AD went down. I think it started when Darvin went to the small two PG line up. This moves Lonnie who is only 6’ 4” to SF. PatBev does a good job of staying in front of guys but it doesn’t help when they shoot over him. And the worst part is our tiny guys shield the shooters from our bigs so they can’t even challenge.
As good as LeBron has been on offense, he is equally bad on defense. He doesn’t close out and leaves his man wide open. And he doesn’t rotate when Bryant or Gabriel leave their man to challenge. This results in a lot of inside baskets and offensive rebounds.
While Troys offense has not been good, we were better defensively when he started because he is bigger. I would love it if we at least started Austin , he is a little bigger. Although that in turn hurts our 2nd unit. All I know is if we do make a trade it better be for a wing player with size or it won’t matter.
We cannot continue starting two 6′ 1″ guards who can’t shoot or defend. Reaves should start. We need a starting small forward and backup center right now. That should be our trade priority.
Reaves starting should be a no-brainer. It’s concerning that it’s not.
Reaves is a perfect fit to start at point guard for Lakers. Austin not only is showing he can hit the open threes, but he’s terrific with his footwork and playmaking and scoring in the paint. Love how he has added breaking down defenses and getting to the rim as part of his game. He’s a better defender on and off the ball than Beverley or Schroder. And on offense, LeBron is still the point guard for the starters. Reaves and Walker should be starting at guard with Brown, Bryant, and James in the front court. At least that starting lineup has good positional size.