The Los Angeles Lakers have had a very topsy turvy campaign. While there were people who called them favourites for the Championship this season especially due to Russell Westbrook’s addition to the roster, things have not really gone down that way.
The Lakers have struggled in recent times with only LeBron James maintaining to hold something against the other teams. Anthony Davis’ injury has been a major bummer for Frack Vogel’s men. His presence on the court was always very influential and it changed a lot of aspects of the Purple and Gold army.
However recently they have found back some form as they defeated Cleveland on Monday. They delivered a dominant 131-120 win over the Cavaliers with James leading from the front with a 38 points performance. He proves that even at this age he is ready to give his all for his team and teammates.
The win was a breath of fresh air for the Lakers faithful as they were frustrated with the consistent drop in performances from their favourite team. Recently The Athletic’s NBA analyst Bill Oram suggested that a win like that will surely boost the morale of the players and also of the fans. He feels that the Lakers should continue to play this way and therefore they will make more believers on the way. “If they continue to play like this, the Lakers will continue to make believers out of more people,” said Bill Oram.
The Purple and Gold army are very desperate to improve after last season’s first round drubbing against the Phoenix Suns. The Suns then reached the NBA Championship finals eventually losing to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks.
But considering the disappointment from last season, everyone expected LeBron James to come out all guns blazing and he has not disappointed his fans. But the problem has been the Lakers as a collective unit which they have not been great this season.
James is averaging 30.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game and leads the NBA’s scoring average. So there are no signs of slowing down from the King.
The main thing that the Lakers need is the return of Anthony Davis and the great team synergy where everyone backs everyone in times of need and takes care of the ball. They will need that team chemistry to flourish in the playoffs otherwise it will be really difficult for Frank Vogel’s men to fight it out against the better performing teams in the league.
