It’s all about the paint, and AD bringing his A game instead of his D game.
Editor’s note: This is the Sunday, May 7, 2023, edition of the “Game Day with Kevin Modesti” newsletter. To receive the newsletter in your inbox, sign up here.
Good morning. The Lakers are back on top of the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Western Conference semifinals. Let’s look at why after a pause for other news.
Best-of-seven-game playoff basketball is often called a series of adjustments, and it was called that in this newsletter as we awaited the Warriors’ response to losing Game 1 to the Lakers.
But sometimes a series’ ebb and flow has less to do with a team discovering a new way to win than knowing the way and executing it.
That was the Lakers in a 127-97 battering of the Warriors last night at Crypto.com Arena that gave L.A. a 2-1 lead in the series going into another home game Monday. That’s heartening and worrisome at the same time for Lakers fans. So much depends on AD bringing his A game instead of his D game.
After winning Game 1 with Anthony Davis (30 points, 23 rebounds) and an in-the-paint emphasis producing a huge free-throw advantage (25 makes to five), then losing Game 2 on an off night for Davis (11, seven) and the inside force (it was 10-10 in free throws made), the Lakers committed to the formula again in Game 3 behind Davis (25, 13) and the foul-line edge (28-12).
“We can talk about coverages and adjustments and all of that, but the basic foundation of us executing anything is our approach, our energy, our effort, our urgency,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said in Elliott Teaford’s game story.
