Despite an auspicious showing from Ivica Zubac and a hellacious fourth quarter surge from Lou Williams, The Lakers fell to the Blazers 105-98 in Portland on Wednesday night, dropping to the second-worst record in the league in the process.
Well, that went a helluva lot better than Dallas, at least.
Just days removed from the worst loss in franchise history, the Lakers returned to action with an admirable effort in Portland — a notorious house of horrors for the Purple & Gold.
LA rallied from a 10-point deficit early in the fourth quarter to take a 94-91 with less than six minutes to play, thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers from Nick Young.
But poor late execution on defense — specifically, Julius Randle giving CJ McCollum time and space to set up behind the 3-point line — and an inability to scratch from inside the arc on offense undermined what would’ve been a top three win on the season for these Lil Lakers.
Still, let’s review a few things that stood out in particular for LA:
Ivica Zubac: A Beautiful, Promising Mixe Bag
It’s been a small sample size, but I’m already willing to buy all outstanding shares of Zubac stock on the market. I’m Jim Cramer hitting the “buy-buy-buy” button right now. Just drop the shares in my Schwab account and send me the bill. The 19-year-old Croatian showed several signs against Portland of the potential second-round steal he can become.
Zubac provided the good, the bad, and the ugly in his career high 28 minutes of action. On offense, he had several plays that belied his years, including a nifty turnaround jump hook in the first half, and a baseline jumper in the second. But he also left a number of opportunities on the table, going 5-15 from the field and missing a few rushed bunnies in the lane he probably wants back.
The shots he missed were good looks, though, as the big Croat was heavily featured in the pick-and-roll and had quality shots as he dove to the basket. And even with his four turnovers, his willingness to look to kick to the open wings after he received the pass was another positive development; it showed an eagerness to make the right basketball play, rather than simply hoist up a shot.
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On defense, Zubac also had an up-and-down night. He pulled down 10 boards and blocked three shots, but he was routinely a half-step behind on his rotations near the basket. Mason Plumlee took full advantage of Zu’s mistakes, scoring 19 points and consistently finishing at the rim. But these weren’t irreversible errors. Zubac was playing his ass off and attempting to get to the right spot most of the time — he was just late.
The key takeaway from the night was Zu’s overall instincts. He simply gets the game, and both his skills and understanding of where to be on both sides of the ball will only improve with time. Couple with the fact he’s so damn big, he’s looking like a nice swindle for Mitch. Lakers fans should continue to be bullish on the rookie.
Lou Williams: Professional NBA Scorer
Sweet Lou had another one of those games, where he puts up a grip of points despite being a munchkin without breakneck speed. Hesitation dribbles, slinky drives to the rim, and, of course, roping fools into fouling him behind the line helped Lou score a game-high 31 points. Not to mention he almost snatched the win for the Lakers in the fourth quarter, when he connected on three straight 3-pointers to bring LA back to within a bucket.
An impact veteran on a cheap contract is an obvious candidate to be moved at the deadline, and if Lou’s time in LA is almost up, it’s been fun watching him herky-jerk his way to countless buckets. And if he can net a decent first-rounder from a playoff team on his way out of town, he’ll immediately jump into my top-five favorite random Lakers ever (step aside, Horace Grant).
Jordan Clarkson: Aggression is Good
Clarkson had one of his best performances of the season on Wednesday night, tallying 22 points off the bench. Speaking of up-and-down, JC has had an enigmatic third season to this point, but his showing against the Blazers was an indicator of how dynamic he can be when his game is flowing.
The recipe for success was his attacking of the basket, as he made five shots within 10 feet of the rim. Clarkson had his nifty runner working, lobbing a few shots high enough to where the Portland bigs couldn’t do anything but wait for the shot to fall through. This is the kind of Clarkson the Lakers need on a nightly basis, and if Lou is moved, I’d expect to see an even more assertive JC with the ball in his hands more.
Check back here tomorrow for coverage of the Lakers taking on the Jazz.
