Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers have been nowhere near their best this season. They stumbled to a 0-2 record to start the campaign and after those first two games, questions were asked. The Russell Westbrook experiment has not gone particularly well either. Westbrook was shooting an abysmal 1 of 11 from 3 point range and 41% from the free-throw line.
Against the San Antonio Spurs, that changed. LeBron James was sidelined due to a sore leg so Westbrook and Anthony Davis were tasked with securing the win. They were made to grind out for the victory. Westbrook posted 33 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists in 40 minutes to lead the Lakers to a 125-121 overtime win. Davis was also very good with 35 points and 17 rebounds.
It is concerning that the Lakers need such huge performances from two stars just to sneak past the Spurs. Concerns remain about Westbrook. Can he be a dominant offensive force off the ball? It remains to be seen how he plays effectively with LeBron. It was still nice to see Westbrook get in a nice rhythm. He is still one of the fastest players in the league in transition. The Lakers can only hope this will lead to more consistent performances.
Read Also: Tuesday`s Carabao Cup Review
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 106-98 Tuesday night to move to a 4-0 record. An interesting stat to note, the Warriors have trailed at halftime in all 4 games this season. They have been extremely consistent. Steph Curry is shooting the ball better than ever. Role players are coming up with big plays. Curry scored 23 points to make sure the Warriors remain undefeated. They did have to rally in the second half to come away with the win.
A 3-pointer by Otto Porter Jr put the Warriors ahead. Their first lead of the night. The Warriors took an 81-76 lead into the fourth. OKC cut that deficit to 4 but the Warriors went on a 9-3 run to gain some safety. The Warriors have a nice 4-game homestand coming up. Memphis are up next at the Chase Center, Thursday night.
As for the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting. They scored the first seven points of the game and led 34-29 at the end of the first. The Thunder certainly did not play badly. A couple of bad plays down the stretch denied them a win.
