Lakers gain momentum in dominating win over Grizzlies
The Los Angeles Lakers tied a franchise record with 22 made threes in a 27-point, 124-107 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday.
“I think our defense dictated a lot of our pace tonight,” head coach Darvin Ham said. “It was beautiful to watch.”
The Lakers improved to a 6–5 on the season and 2–0 in the West-A group of the in-season tournament.
Three-point shooting has been an ongoing struggle for the Lakers to start the season, ranking at the bottom in the first 10 games. Tonight, the Lakers looked far from inconsistent from behind the arc, shooting a season-high 62.9% from three on 22-of-35 attempts.
Before their Memphis matchup, the Lakers ranked 29 in three-point shooting at an average of 30.4% from three. The Lakers now rank 23 in the NBA after their win over the Grizzlies, at an average three-point percentage of 34%, according to TeamRanking.
Seven players scored in double figures in the Lakers' stellar scoring night, with five scoring over 15 points.
Anthony Davis played with added motivation in a dominant performance against last season’s Defensive Player of the Year, Jaren Jackson Jr. Davis began the game with an impactful sequence, blocking Jackson Jr. twice in one possession, setting the tone for the night.
“He’s really the quarterback of our defense.” Ham said on Davis’ defensive impact for the Lakers.
Davis held Jackson Jr. to eight points on 3-of-16 (18.7%) shooting. Davis finished with 19 points on 63.6% (7-for-11) from the field, with 11 rebounds, six blocks and five assists in 26 minutes.
In a Lakers’ victory where they held the lead for most of the game, it provided them with a chance to do something they hadn’t done since last season: rest LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the fourth quarter.
LeBron only saw 22 minutes of action in their blowout win over the Girzziles, where he finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
D’Angelo Russell made his mark out of halftime with a scorching hot hand from three, scoring 13 points in the third quarter. Russell finished with a game-high 24 points on 6-for-8 (75%) shooting from three and 8-for-12 (66.6%) overall.
Rui Hachimura was the Lakers second-leading scorer on the night, with 23 points in 23 minutes played off the bench. He shot an efficient 3-for-3 from deep and 8-for-10 (80%) from the field.
“Everybody knows playing with the Lakers is it’s a pressure,” Hachimura said. “Those looks for new guys, it’s a little different. I felt that when I came last year, when I got traded. Once you get used to it, it’s easy looks.”
Austin Reaves was another player who impacted the game from the bench, who was three assists shy of a triple double. In 29 minutes, Reaves finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, while shooting 4-for-4 from three and 5-for-9 (55.5%) overall.
The Lakers play their next matchup on the second end of a back-to-back scheduled game on Wednesday against the Sacramento Kings at home at 7 p.m.
