The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off a 127-102 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, where the team got outscored by 31 points in the second half in an embarrassing display against one of their biggest rivals. Guard Austin Reaves reflected on the matchup today during Lakers practice, speaking to the media frankly about the team's defensive issues outside of Anthony Davis.
“I think if you watch basketball for a long time, the teams which are "physical" defensive teams, they might get away with a little more because every possession you can't call a foul. We’re trying to get to that, be physical, and we're going to have to make the refs call fouls. Our personnel if we’re going to be honest with ourselves, isn’t the best defensively. Obviously, we got AD and that covers up a lot but we have to be physical.”
The Lakers have a 117.9 defensive rating this season, the fifth worst in the NBA. They're not a very polished offensive team either, so they need to rely on their defense to give the offensive options a chance to keep the game close.
The secret sauce behind their run to the 2023 Western Conference Finals was defense, but the team is sorely missing presences like Jarred Vanderbilt to enhance the team on that end.
The Lakers have a Defensive Player of the Year caliber player in Anthony Davis covering up a lot of the holes on the roster, but even his play isn't always enough to limit teams. Unless the Lakers adopt a team-wide defensive identity with Davis as the focus, they will struggle to compete against high-powered offenses like the Nuggets.
Austin Reaves Was Upset With The Lakers' Low Effort In Loss To Nuggets
Austin Reaves echoed the sentiments that head coach JJ Redick shared about the team's loss to the Nuggets in his postgame media availability. Redick was shocked by the team's effort on the court before also calling the loss an aberration due to the team's uncharacteristic second-half blowout.
Reaves mentioned their battles with the Nuggets last year before agreeing with his head coach about the team's low level of effort and competitiveness in the loss.
"Last year was last year. The year before was so long ago, I could barely remember what I did yesterday. Yeah, tonight they beat the s**t out of us. I mean, I think that’s kind of just what I said. I’m sure JJ said as well, just wasn’t good enough. That should never be the problem. If we compete and lose off of not making shots or the other things, other than not playing hard, then you can live with those results. Tonight, in that third quarter, just didn’t play hard."
Reaves put up 19 points (7-13 FG) with six assists in the loss, performing above his season averages but the defensive meltdown made his contributions worthless. He's averaging 17.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 5.3 assists this season.
