The Los Angeles Lakers reminded everyone on Monday of an essential fact: They can still defeat the NBA’s top teams, despite all the difficult losses and injuries they’ve had to deal with this season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder came into Crypto.com Arena with the best record in the Western Conference, but they were defeated 116-104.
The Lakers’ defense delivered, limiting Oklahoma City to 39% shooting and shutting out NBA MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Lakers Coach Darvin Ham Views On The Match
The Lakers’ coaching staff discussed the value of defense during the team’s morning shoot-around. They urged players to stop the ball on defense. Do not gamble. Defend without fouling. Grab defensive rebounds.
The Lakers very much did everything said above against the Thunder (42-19). Gilgeous-Alexander was the league’s second-leading scorer (31.2 points per game), but he was limited to 20 points on five-of-13 shooting. Jalin Williams, another rising Thunder star, scored only two of nine shots for seven points.
Lakers coach Darvin Ham praised his team’s defense, saying, “Our defense, man, kudos to our guys.”
They had a nearly flawless first half defense, limiting Oklahoma City to 30.6% shooting on their way to a 52-43 lead. They would have done better, but 12 turnovers in the first half allowed the Thunder to score 14 easy points.
Ham remarked, “I told them at halftime it was like the best defensive half I’ve seen all season”. Their lead grew to 89-72 after three quarters, due to a smothering defense that had not appeared much this season. D’Angelo Russell nailed back-to-back three-pointers early in the fourth quarter, putting the Lakers up by 24 points.
The Lakers dominated 55-38 in the battle of the boards. The team’s difficult run continues with home games against Sacramento on Wednesday, Milwaukee on Friday, and Minnesota on Sunday.
