No LeBron, A lot of Problems
By Colin Dixon January 15th, 2019
Picture Via @Lakers Twitter
After a shaky start to the season, the Los Angeles Lakers finally caught fire and were opening eyes in the Western Conference. Going into their Christmas Night showdown with the reigning champion Golden State Warriors the Lakers were 19-14 and on a roll.
LeBron James was entering his first game against the Warriors since joining the Lakers and the matchup was set up to be an epic showdown. But, in the third quarter, James went down with a left groin injury and did not return to the game.
Without James, the Lakers managed to still come out with a huge victory over the Warriors. But, ever since then the Lakers have been ice cold with just 3 wins in the last 10 games.
It was going to be very interesting to see what this Lakers team was going to do without the King in their lineup and they have struggled severely without hi in. 3 of their 7 losses have come to teams under the .500 mark and against good competition they have not given much of a fight.
The young Lakers have not found a leader without James on the court and it has shown throughout his absence. Young stars Kyle Kuzma, Lonzo Ball, and Brandon Ingram have had to step up but all three of them have struggled to get the Lakers out of their slump.
All three stars have had big games just at separate times and have not been able to mesh as well without their leader on the court. The most significant performance of the three stars was second-year player Kyle Kuzma who scored 41 points in just 3 quarters against the Pistons.
Without the team leader in points per game, assists per game, and rebounds per game the Lakers have seemed lost when on the court. Given they are a very young team without a lot of experience, if these young players are going to help LeBron lead the Lakers back to the promise land they need to step up in a big way.
A timetable for LeBron's return is still unknown but the Lakers are in dire need for some leadership on the court. LeBron has still been on the bench but he can only do so much from the sideline.
The Lakers upcoming matchup is tonight versus the Chicago Bulls who are struggling and have lost their last 7 games. This is an opportunity for the Lakers to get back into their winning ways and catch fire in time for LeBron's return.
As well, LeBron is not the only player that has been gone from the Lakers lineup, Rajon Rondo has been absent for quite some time and his veteran presence has been missed.
Although it is too early to worry about if they will make the playoffs or not the Lakers biggest worry is how they will do going into the All-Star Break. 13 more games remain on the 1st half of the season and the Lakers believe LeBron should be back before the break begins.
Although without the King, the Lakers have struggled mightily, once he is back they should not have to worry and just hope he can stay healthy and lead them back to the playoffs.
After a shaky start to the season, the Los Angeles Lakers finally caught fire and were opening eyes in the Western Conference. Going into their Christmas Night showdown with the reigning champion Golden State Warriors the Lakers were 19-14 and on a roll.
LeBron James was entering his first game against the Warriors since joining the Lakers and the matchup was set up to be an epic showdown. But, in the third quarter, James went down with a left groin injury and did not return to the game.
Without James, the Lakers managed to still come out with a huge victory over the Warriors. But, ever since then the Lakers have been ice cold with just 3 wins in the last 10 games.
It was going to be very interesting to see what this Lakers team was going to do without the King in their lineup and they have struggled severely without hi in. 3 of their 7 losses have come to teams under the .500 mark and against good competition they have not given much of a fight.
The young Lakers have not found a leader without James on the court and it has shown throughout his absence. Young stars Kyle Kuzma, Lonzo Ball, and Brandon Ingram have had to step up but all three of them have struggled to get the Lakers out of their slump.
All three stars have had big games just at separate times and have not been able to mesh as well without their leader on the court. The most significant performance of the three stars was second-year player Kyle Kuzma who scored 41 points in just 3 quarters against the Pistons.
Without the team leader in points per game, assists per game, and rebounds per game the Lakers have seemed lost when on the court. Given they are a very young team without a lot of experience, if these young players are going to help LeBron lead the Lakers back to the promise land they need to step up in a big way.
A timetable for LeBron's return is still unknown but the Lakers are in dire need for some leadership on the court. LeBron has still been on the bench but he can only do so much from the sideline.
The Lakers upcoming matchup is tonight versus the Chicago Bulls who are struggling and have lost their last 7 games. This is an opportunity for the Lakers to get back into their winning ways and catch fire in time for LeBron's return.
As well, LeBron is not the only player that has been gone from the Lakers lineup, Rajon Rondo has been absent for quite some time and his veteran presence has been missed.
Although it is too early to worry about if they will make the playoffs or not the Lakers biggest worry is how they will do going into the All-Star Break. 13 more games remain on the 1st half of the season and the Lakers believe LeBron should be back before the break begins.
Although without the King, the Lakers have struggled mightily, once he is back they should not have to worry and just hope he can stay healthy and lead them back to the playoffs.
