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LOS ANGELES – The Toronto Raptors gave their star at night. LeBron James just had a quarter to sit on the bench.
After three ruthless periods of Lakers clubbing, at that time, there was no reason to keep him on the ground.
It took 10 games, but the Lakers (4-6) were finally shaken. The 121-107 loss was against a team of Raptors (9-1) that many consider to be one of the best in the league. But it happened at home, and against a team for which James in particular has enjoyed a psychic hold year after year in the Eastern Conference playoffs. And he did not even have to deal with Kawhi Leonard, one of the few luminaries in the NBA considered to be one of James' real rivals.
"They just came out and hit us in the mouth," said James. "It's very, very difficult to win a match of this type when you try to spend so much energy to get it back."
LeBron reacts to the loss suffered by the Raptors, said Toronto hit the Lakers in the mouth. Also talking about the decision to stay out of the fourth quarter. pic.twitter.com/19RrIQZdvD
– Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) November 5, 2018
In five previous defeats, the Lakers had kept the games competitive until the last minute. Sunday night, the Raptors did not pretend to lead 41-10 in the first quarter, under the hot hand of Serge Ibaka (34 points, 9 rebounds) who made his first 14 shots of the match.
The comparison of the Lakers' efforts was reduced to nothing: the fast-tempo team was constantly beaten on the ground by the Toronto Transition Attack and then dissociated by a peripheral shot. The Lakers scored only four of their first 17 shots of the evening, and James' 3-pointer with a time remaining at 4:22 in the third quarter was the team's first goal in the game.
Strangely enough, the match seemed close to hand when the Lakers chose to play young in the fourth quarter. The Lakers got 10 points in the last two minutes, but several Raptors starters pulled back to score the win for good.
James said the assistant coach, Brian Shaw, approached him with about five minutes of play and asked him if he wanted to come back. By that time, James had sat for the whole quarter and the Raptors were still double-digit.
"I had been sitting there for so long and I was therefore in agreement with the unit that was playing well at that time," he said. "Let them continue."
A win is welcome, no matter what the night, but there were several good reasons that the win was particularly rewarding Sunday night. The match came as the Lakers began to ease the tension following coach Luke Walton's meeting with team president Magic Johnson, who expressed his support for the media before the match. It would be reassuring to beat what is perceived as one of the strongest teams in the NBA with Leonard at rest, especially since the Lakers could be one of the teams trying to seduce Leonard in full freedom.
It was also a particularly starring night at the Staples Center, with Denzel Washington, Canelo Alvarez, Kristen Bell and Odell Beckham among the many fans gathered for another battle, waiting to see the new look of the Lakers, LeBron James, direct the franchise. back to relevance.
But this team they were waiting for – it did not show up.
In his opening statement, Luke Walton emphasized the importance of Toronto in explaining the lack of dynamism of the Lakers. pic.twitter.com/GYfCO4bTcT
– Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) November 5, 2018
Walton said that he had warned his team to be too complacent with Leonard being sidelined. According to his experience, he said, he has seen teams play with "a sense of freedom and joy" when a star takes a night to rest, when the pressure decreases. It was a startling sight on a night when the Lakers seemed to be giving in with their own star on the ground.
"We tried to explain that it is so it works," Walton said. "But it did not seem like we were taking it to heart."
The Lakers were kicked out of the door, fighting for a small formation in Toronto with Ibaka as their center. JaVale McGee, who entered the game as the league's best blocker, appeared to be quite opposed to trying to protect Ibaka, who maneuvered with skill to clear a path or escaped out of the league. McGee's reach.
Luke Walton said that deficiencies in the defense team rather than those of a single cover were the main reason why the Lakers were struggling to contain Serge Ibaka. pic.twitter.com/NfQOPArtYO
– Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) November 5, 2018
The Lakers tried to react by doing small. Ibaka also destroyed these defenses. In the first half alone, the 29-year-old was 11-11 for 26 points. Walton described him as a "receiver" of team failures, when McGee had to help cover on the other end of the pitch, Ibaka was able to pounce.
Kyle Lowry was an additional nuisance, distributing nine of his 15 assists in the first quarter alone.
James finished the night with 18 points and 6 assists, going from 6 to 12 in the three quarters he played. Kyle Kuzma got the best score of his team with 24 points
The Lakers have two days off before playing at home against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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