LOS ANGELES — The Lakers reconfigured their rotation at the close of trade, adding three starters and new life to a locker room that needed it. Her two stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, are finally healthy together. They exited the All-Star break with an increased level of focus and conviction.
Opposite vibrations permeate the Golden State Warriors. Their only deadline move, a swap from James Wiseman for Gary Payton II, left them with an injured player who needs at least a month’s rest and dampened spirits from a team that believed it would get an immediate boost.
Two of their key players, Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins, are out with uncertain return times. There was a faint hope that the break would reignite the remaining shorthanded rotation, but that dissipated fairly quickly on Thursday night. The Lakers quickly surged into double digits, weathering a surge from Jordan Poole late in the second quarter and blowing out the Warriors in the third quarter by winning 124-111 after leading by 28.
“I liked our energy from the start,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr. “Then I think we got a little demoralized a couple of times when things didn’t go the way we wanted. I don’t think we’re confident enough in important passages.”
The two areas of most concern for Kerr and the Warriors veterans in the post-game locker room are constant fouling and shot selection. Habitual grabs and fast, out-of-rhythm 3s.
They continue to hack their opponents down the line at a rate not seen in three seasons. Teams have averaged 26.1 free throw attempts against the Warriors this season. The Lakers were there 34 times Thursday night. The Warriors came 21 times, and on average they also made the fewest attempts in the league.
The discrepancy is partly related to a constant difference in size. The Warriors are smaller built, offensively living on the periphery, and have leaned into a shorter, faster identity. Kerr started a front line of Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Jonathan Kuminga against Jarred Vanderbilt, James and Davis on Thursday night. It was quite predictable which team had to foul more often.
But it wasn’t the only reason.
“Playing small has nothing to do with the stupid fouls we get,” Warriors guard Ty Jerome said. “We emphasize that very much. Hold our hands back. But we keep going. Then when you get the cheap fouls, the 50-50 looks worse. You enter the bonus within the first five minutes and cannot play aggressively. So we have to stop with the stupid cheap ones and maybe the 50-50 will go our way. But if you’re a team that fouls all the time, the umpires will call more fouls.”
Here is an example of the stupid fouls. These are two from the early third quarter when the Lakers started the run that would put the game out of reach. Poole trips James while he dribbles near the touchline. Thompson hits Austin Reaves in the arm during a wild pull-up attempt. You can see Green’s arms raise in despair at Poole’s foul.
Fouls slow play and allow the Lakers to drop their defenses. Defensive mistakes lead to a more challenging offensive landscape. The game is connected. The Warriors also put their defenses in vulnerable positions because of their obsession with quick threes, which are often contested and sometimes result in runouts in the other direction.
The Warriors average 43.1 3s per game, leading the NBA. Without Curry, you might expect a decline. But they took 49 against the Lakers and only made 14, a 28.6 percent conversion rate. Kuminga was baited into a handful early in the game as James and Davis sagged off him. The mistakes seem to throw him off his game. Anthony Lamb missed all four of his attempts. Donte DiVincenzo and Poole scored a combined 3-of-13.
“Basically turnovers,” Kerr said.
Those are the attempts that hurt the most. Poole, just before the start of the Lakers’ breakaway in the third quarter, only saunters into a semi-contested 3 off balance with 17 still on the shot clock before exploring possession.
The loss drops the Warriors to 7-23 on the road and 29-30 overall. They are linked with the Jazz for the ninth time and are now just 1 1/2 games ahead of the Lakers in 13th place and risk falling quickly if they don’t recover on that upcoming homestand.
Returning to San Francisco offers some respite. The five-game home grandstand opens Friday night with the battered Houston Rockets, who are without Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. The Warriors then face the Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers, LA Clippers and New Orleans Pelicans. Curry has already been ruled out by the Blazers game and Wiggins’ status remains mysterious as he deals with a private family issue. He is not expected to rejoin the team for Friday’s game against the Rockets.
(Photo of Anthony Davis and Kevon Looney battling for the ball in Thursday’s second half: Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)