The Los Angeles Lakers faced one of their toughest opponents on Friday night when they hosted the 38-6 San Antonio Spurs. Despite all the attention the Golden State Warriors have been getting the season, the Spurs are just as dangerous and the Lakers saw that first hand at Staples Center.
The Spurs ended up winning the game by 13, 108-95, behind solid play from the entire lineup. San Antonio can beat teams in many different ways and on any given night, one of their players can stuff the stat sheet. Manu Ginobili led the way for San Antonio with 20 points and he won his matchup against D’Angelo Russell, who also comes off the bench for his team.
After the loss, Kobe Bryant shared what he told Russell and learning from the veterans in this league, via Bob Garcia of Sports Out West:
Kobe Bryant on D'Angelo Russell learning: "You can learn from anybody that you play. Ginobili is special and extremely energized." #lakers
— Bob Garcia IV (@bgarciaivsports) January 23, 2016
Russell had a career night the last time the Lakers played the Spurs, and that was on the road in San Antonio. On this occasion, the rookie from Ohio State dropped 18 points to go along with his three assists. Russell is still a part of the second unit for the Lakers and his playing time is not where he, or the fans, would like it to be. Coach Byron Scott is still sticking with Lou Williams in the starting lineup and there are no signs of him changing the rotation any time soon.
Los Angeles will be traveling to Portland to go up against the Trail Blazers tonight. The Blazers currently stand at 19-26 on the season and they have played well this season, considering the fact that they lost their star LaMarcus Aldridge in the summer to the Spurs.