Although the Los Angeles Lakers were hoping to get their first win in the Las Vegas Summer League, they ultimately fell short in their efforts with an 88-80 loss against the Golden State Warriors.
Both teams started the game trading buckets before the Lakers started to pull away thanks to the combined efforts of Zach Norvell Jr. and Jordan Caroline early on. They made a clear-cut effort to move the ball around and it resulted in plenty of open looks on offense, which Carolina was able to take advantage of.
Despite the Warriors’ struggles from deep, a hot start from Jacob Evans helped keep his team within striking distance. His efforts prevented Los Angeles from capturing a double-digit lead as they ended the opening period with a 24-17 lead.
While each team had no trouble scoring to start the game, that was certainly not the case early in the second quarter as both sides looked to ramp up their energy on the defensive end. This proved to be more beneficial for Golden State as they were able to cut the deficit back down to four midway through the period to cause a break in the action.
The Warriors were finally managed to end their drought from deep with a three-pointer from Jordan Poole after they started the game 0-for 7. This helped them to regain the lead on the back of an 11-0 run while the Lakers did little to respond and ultimately found themselves down 45-37 going into halftime.
Unlike the first half, Golden State had no problem finding their stroke from deep to take a 13-point lead. Meanwhile, Caroline continued to carry the load on offense and he capitalized on his aggressive approach by knocking down all his free-throws.
The Lakers finally managed to pick up the slack and enjoyed a bit of a resurgence after cutting into their deficit with 9-0 run. As a result, they only found themselves in a prime position for a potential comeback only down by eight heading into the final period.
Both teams once again were able to trade punches to start the fourth quarter until the Warriors regained their double-digit lead by capitalizing on the Lakers’ carelessness with the ball.
