Why the Lakers’ Star Power Still Can’t Fix Their Fatal Flaw

Austin Reaves yanked off his headband in disgust. Down three against Phoenix, less than a second on the clock, the Lakers needed a miracle. The play-call was perfect. Marcus Smart floated a pass cross court. A cutting Reaves got under it. A Maxi Kleber screen held off the closest defender. Reaves rose up … and missed.

“Looked clean coming out of his hand,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “I thought it was in.”

Said Reaves, “Good play-call. I got a good look. Missed it.”

There are losses and there is … this. The Suns entered the game in a tailspin. Losers of six of the last eight, down an All-Star in Devin Booker, down a should-have-been All-Star in Dillon Brooks. Phoenix scored 77 points in a loss to Portland on Sunday. Against Boston, it mustered 81.

On Thursday, the Suns gashed the Lakers for 113, connecting on 46% from the floor. At L.A.’s morning meeting, Redick emphasized the need to limit the Suns’ three-point shooting. Phoenix finished 22 of 50 from deep.

“We were supposed to win,” Smart said. “We did everything right. We were healthy. We’re playing well, and we let our foot up, and they made us pay for it. And those are the ones that get us.”

The Lakers needed to play with urgency. They didn’t. They needed to play with defensive discipline. Didn’t do that, either. Redick did his best to push back on any sky-is-falling narrative. “Our losses are louder than other teams,” Redick said. “Because we’re the Lakers, and because of how we lose.” But that sound you hear is the Crypto.com Arena roof hitting the floor.

Sorry, Tinseltown: This season won’t have a Hollywood ending. The Lakers teased you early. Luka Dončić started the season in great shape and Reaves made a jump. Even without LeBron James for the first two months, they were 13–4 at Thanksgiving.

But it wasn’t real. None of it was. The Lakers entered Thursday’s game 24th in defensive rating, and if you watched it you can see why. Rotations are slow. Rim protection is nonexistent. The game was tied at 80 entering the fourth quarter. By the midway point, the Suns had gone on an 18–3 run.

Dončić’s whining at officials has become a national story. But his defense is a bigger problem. On Thursday, the Suns put Dončić in simple actions. Far too frequently, he gave up. Phoenix’s game-winning three came off a possession that began when Grayson Allen, who will never be confused for James Harden, beat Dončić off the dribble.

“You have to defend for 24 seconds,” Redick said. “So that starts in transition and then they’re just [going to] keep playing and get to multiple actions and, and that’s the part that I think that just hurt us a lot. Just being able to keep up with their pace and their speed.”

Dončić, James and Reaves are dynamic offensive players. Together, they stink. The trio has played 213 minutes together, per NBA.com. The Lakers’ offensive rating with all three on the floor: 106.7. That’s not Voltron. That’s a Volvo. For context, Indiana has the NBA’s worst offensive rating—at a full two points better. L.A.’s net rating with its Big Three is a ghastly -8.4.

And they aren’t getting much help. Deandre Ayton’s return to Phoenix was a disaster. Ayton scored two points. He attempted three shots. He was a -24 in 22 minutes. In an ESPN story this week, Ayton declared the Lakers were trying to turn him into Clint Capela. On the Suns’ broadcast, ex-NBA wing Eddie Johnson cracked, “I would probably surmise tonight, he might be worse than Clint Capela.”

The Lakers did their best to put a positive spin on this. “We just got to keep bringing the mindset of trying to win every game,” Dončić said. “We got to continue to trust,” said Smart. “We can’t let games like this deter us from trusting each other.” Redick steered his postgame comments toward how L.A., which trailed by as many as 12 in the fourth quarter, was able to come back.

“You’re not gonna avoid adversity,” Redick said. “I thought our guys were great with that tonight. Basketball is a game of mistakes and we made mistakes. I make mistakes. I don’t think Jordan Ott coached a perfect game. I don’t think their players [were perfect]. Grayson Allen kicked our butt and he was 9 for 24. That’s the game.”

Indeed. And right now, the Lakers aren’t very good at it. L.A. has dropped five of its last seven. It is percentage points ahead of Phoenix for the final playoff spot. Another couple of losses—the Lakers head to San Francisco for a matchup with the Warriors on Saturday—and they could fall into the play-in mix.

Asked for his frustration level, Reaves said, “Very high.”

But this is who they are. Dončić is a sublime offensive player. He scored 41 points against Phoenix, willing the team back into the game in the fourth quarter. Reaves is in the midst of a career-best season. James was an All-Star. A 34–24 record isn’t great, but it won’t remind anyone of Utah, Washington or New Orleans, either.

The Lakers can be a good team. They just can never be a great one. Not this season. Not with this roster. As Reaves’s shot rimmed out, Dončić doubled over in a corner. James hustled off the floor. L.A. nearly had its miracle. To make anything out of this season, it will need many more.

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