[ad_1]
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers earned their first pre-season win on Thursday, a 128-123 victory over the Sacramento Kings, to move to 1-2, but you would not know it in light of the remarks Prints of coach Luke Walton at his match press conference.
"We have to improve," Walton said before answering questions. "Three things we talked about before the matches: the selections, we talked about not returning the ball and not getting dirty, and – we were not good at those nights, we have to improve a lot this week or whatever the length of the day, we left until the beginning of the season. "
Los Angeles has two full weeks and three exhibition games on schedule before the regular season opens against the Portland Trail Blazers.
While Walton was right to tear the performance of his team, which included 18 turnovers that led to 32 points for Sacramento and 25 fouls that led to 28 shots for the Kings, there were some individual brilliants that deserved to be recognized.
Brandon Ingram, replacing the Lakers as a starting point with Lonzo Ball and Rajon Rondo in rest, led the Lakers to points (31 on 10 shots at 15), rebounds (9) and thefts (3) and made games in bottom of the stretch to close the victory.
"I thought it was great," said LeBron James about Ingram. "His pace, his ability to play point and wing, it's a very special talent, and we're really happy to have it with us."
It was a continuation of James' accolades for Ingram since media day. That day, when ESPN asked him about Ingram, James replied, "Be careful, I think it's next."
"I know what I see in him and he's looking for that opportunity to make that leap into his third year," said James, who had 18 points and four assists in 16 minutes against the Kings. "So, there is a lot of potential in this kid, and I'm happy to try to give him as much as I can."
Although James's appreciation for Ingram was obvious, he did not want to define how much a jump was such that Ingram could do this season.
"We do not know," James said. "But he's a big kid, he works hard – extremely hard – and he has a lot of talent, and he believes in his abilities, we'll see what the next jump is, but none of us are prophets, we do not know. "
Ingram said that James' support encourages him to train harder.
"It makes you want to continue," said Ingram, whose locker is located next to James' stand at the Staples Center. "I do not think I want to stop here." My expectations are far superior to anyone else in this room or anyone else, so for him, it's an extreme compliment, because, of course, that's all. is my teammate, and I have my back at all times. "
After initially criticizing his team, Walton started shooting goalkeeper Josh Hart. Hart's impact could not be denied on Thursday, when he had 17 points, five rebounds, a counter-shot and a plus-minus lead by the over-20 team.
"Josh was great, he really did," Walton said. "It's good to see because he came in and the season ended, we gave everyone free time, he went into the gym and started working and getting up and he came to me and told me: 'Coach, I want to play the whole summer league, I want to play Sacramento and [Las] Vegas, every game.
"So he did that, went out and won [summer league] MVP took a few days off and returned immediately to work again. So, whenever anyone is successful and puts the job Josh has done, it's good to see. "
David West, who retired from the Golden State Warriors this season off, was so impressed by Hart's evening that he tweeted on Marc Spears of The Undefeated in the Lakers-Kings game to explain how the Hart's defense against him had helped him out of the league.
Hart responded with a slight West rib after the match.
James, who, like West, was recruited in 2003, shows no sign of slowing down or difficulty for his young teammates.
"He's taking so much care that I can be much more effective at pointing, then defensive energy, keeping the guys in the queue, just trying to start our attack with the defense," he said. said Ingram about James.
For as many problems as Walton saw on Thursday, the general confidence of his group has not taken a step back.
"My confidence continues to grow as I continue to play," Ingram said. "I see the match going down, my teammates getting me confidence on the bench, my teammates at the basketball stadium, so every day I go out, I just try to be better than I can." 39, yesterday. "
Source link
