The Los Angeles Lakers have looked like a different team on the offensive end over their last handful of games. The bump goes back nine games, a stretch that has seen them collect the No. 8 offensive rating in the NBA. But an even more stark bump can be seen in the last six games — since putting D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Taurean Prince next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the starting lineup — when they rank sixth in that category.
In the last nine games, the Lakers are tied with the Indiana Pacers, leading the league in assists per game at 31.2. They are second behind the San Antonio Spurs with 30.7 per game in their last six. The Lakers are playing a more free-flowing style of offense that has led to more consistent victories. They are 5-4 in their last nine and 4-2 in their last six.
Davis, for one, thinks it’s very clear why the Lakers have had offensive success in the last few weeks and what he believes needs to happen in order to keep that going.
“We’re just playing together, sharing the basketball. When you play the right way, good things tend to happen,” Davis said. “We’re not being selfish, we’re not holding the ball too long. Guys are making the right plays. If you see a crowd, we’re moving on, and guys are being quick decision-makers either passing and shooting or driving it.
“So when we play free, play together like we are, sharing the basketball, then the assist numbers goes up, and guys are able to shoot the ball with confidence and know that the ball will come to me if I’m open instead of getting the ball and trying to force one if you haven’t touched one in a while.”
Davis applauded the Lakers for their recent assist numbers. Specifically, the fact that they have had at least 27 assists in nine consecutive games.
“When you’re sharing the basketball, if a guy is open, we’re finding them, and guys are confident enough to step up and make shots. It’s really simple. Basketball is a simple game. Play the right way and good things happen.”
The Lakers have been playing at Crypto.com Arena during this stretch, a place where they have been noticeably better all season. But this homestand gave Davis and the Lakers a chance to learn a bit about who they are as a team.
“We’ve shown flashes of who we can be on both ends of the floor. Now it’s just about putting it all together more consistently. … But I think for the most part, we’ve shown this type of team to be on both ends of the floor.”
The Lakers have some work to do to climb the Western Conference standings, but finding some success with a more offense-heavy identity may be the key to getting consistent wins for the time being.
Lakers emphasizing offensive rebounds moving forward
One of the prominent issues early this season was winning the glass, specifically limiting second-chance opportunities for opponents. But, on Tuesday against the L.A. Clippers, the Lakers won the offensive rebounding battle 13-6, which helped the game remain competitive and something that head coach Darvin Ham wants the team to carry with them moving forward.
“Absolutely. It’s something we identified and talked about, we’ve been talking about. But we really made it an emphasis this morning in shootaround,” Ham said when asked about attacking the offensive glass. “We have five or six guys who really can get us some money on the offensive glass in terms of getting us extra possessions for us and certain guys that their jobs are gonna be just to support whoever is crashing. They have to sprint back and start our transition defense early. Yeah, it’s something we definitely identified and it went well tonight.”
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