Undermanned Lakers earn bounce-back win over Bulls
LOS ANGELES -- Missing two starters because of injuries, the Los Angeles Lakers fortunately have one of the best players in the NBA to shoulder the load.
LeBron James picked up the slack with starters Anthony Davis and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope out, finishing with a team-high 28 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, leading the Lakers to a 117-115 victory over the visiting Chicago Bears at Staples Center on Friday.
With the win, the Lakers improved to 7-3 on the season, while the Bulls dropped to 4-6.
The Lakers trailed by as many as 10 points but managed to wrestle control of the game by the end of the third quarter and then held on in the fourth.
Just as the Lakers had no answer for LaMarcus Aldridge on Thursday against the San Antonio Spurs, on Friday, they had trouble slowing down Chicago Bulls’ swingman Zach LaVine, who scored 19 points in the opening quarter and finished with 38 points, along with six assists.
LaVine missed an 18-foot fadeaway from the wing that would have given the Bulls the win had it dropped with 4.7 seconds left.
Top player: In his first start for the Lakers, Wesley Matthews shined, finishing with 14 points, shooting 4-of-8 from beyond the arc.
What I liked: The Lakers finished with a 41-32 edge in bench points and 23-13 advantage at the free throw line. … Montrezl Harrell brought good energy off the bench, finishing with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
What I did not like: For a second straight game the Lakers allowed their opponents to get comfortable on offense. The Bulls shot nearly 60 percent from the field in the first half, but cooled off in the second half, finishing at 50.5 percent for the game. … The Bulls had a 62-42 advantage in the paint.
Injuries: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was held for a fourth game due to a mild left ankle sprain he suffered last week against San Antonio. Joining him on the sideline was Anthony Davis, due to a right adductor strain. Wesley Matthews and Markieff Morris replaced the two in the starting lineup for the Lakers.
They said it: “We’re playing hard, but we’re late on our coverages. Our communication really hasn’t been good. We’re good in the first, initial 10 seconds of the clock -- even 15 seconds into the clock -- but it’s that second action or third action that teams run that kinds of gets us.” – Anthony Davis on his team’s struggles defensively.
