Without LeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers were facing a steep uphill climb against a Golden State Warriors squad that’s been excellent when playing at home.
Although Stephen Curry also didn’t play, it was a tough matchup for the Lakers who were also introducing several new players they acquired after the trade deadline. Despite the factors working against them, Los Angeles managed to put together a great game on both ends of the floor and take a win from Golden State on the road.
Dennis Schroder was a menace on both ends of the floor, playing with a heightened level of energy and verve. Offensively, Schroder used his speed to get to his spots on the floor while defensively he was fantastic chasing Warrior players off of screens and denying them the ball.
The German led the Lakers in scoring with 26 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field and 9-of-11 from the free throw line. Schroder made it more of a sweat in the fourth quarter when he missed two crunch-time free throws, but eventually made it up by knocking down a pair in the closing seconds.
Joining Schroder in the backcourt was D’Angelo Russell, who was making his second debut with the purple and gold. After shaking off a slow start, Russell was able to find a groove offensively as he used his craft dribbling to get to his jumper.
Like Schroder, Russell came up big when he needed to with a few baskets in the fourth quarter plus a great find to the corner to Rui Hachimura for a clutch 3-pointer. The former All-Star finished with 15 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds.
The most impressive Laker debut came from Jarred Vanderbilt, who injected some much-needed energy each minute he played. Vanderbilt was everywhere, running hard and making several effort plays that shifted the momentum L.A.’s way.
In just 17 minutes, Vanderbilt managed to rack up 12 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal. His versatile skillset should lead to more playing time and quite possibly a starting spot.
For the Warriors, Jordan Poole carried the load as he scored a game-high 29 points with most of them coming in the fourth quarter.
What’s next for Lakers
The Lakers finish up their brief road trip on Monday when they take on the Portland Trail Blazers. They’ll come home and play the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday before getting some rest as the NBA celebrates All-Star Weekend.
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