“Yeah, I was terrible again. That’s it.” That was the blunt assessment from Austin Reaves after a stunning defensive collapse at Chase Center, where the Los Angeles Lakers watched a comfortable 25-point advantage completely slip away.
The Los Angeles Lakers saw things going entirely their way when Austin Reaves successfully converted a pair of foul shots at the start of the second quarter, extending their advantage to 40-15 against the Golden State Warriors. Following that moment, however, the matchup took a disastrous turn as the Warriors outscored the Lakers by a 97-55 margin the rest of the way to secure a resounding victory, according to lakersnation.com.
How the 25-Point Lead Evaporated in San Francisco
Luke Doncic got the Lakers off to a great start in the first quarter, establishing a commanding presence early on. But when he went to the bench, the second unit led by Reaves let the massive advantage completely evaporate against a relentless Golden State response.
Struggling with his performance, Reaves committed eight turnovers for the second consecutive game, a total he readily acknowledges is far below standard. “Just bad. We were bad. That first group that started the second unit was bad,” Reaves said on Spectrum SportsNet after the loss. “Like I said, it starts with me. So I’ll be better.”
Even though the squad opened the campaign with four wins in their first five games prior to the setback against Golden State, the presence of nine newcomers means they are still figuring out how to mesh as a unit. While that chemistry hurdle remains a reality, Reaves refused to use it as a crutch for Friday’s collapse.
Austin Reaves did not mince words about his play in the #Lakers loss to the Warriors.https://t.co/RqcdqEQxBV
“Yeah, it’s real,” he said regarding the roster turnover. “Pero that doesn’t give that second unit an excuse to be pretty terrible. And that starts with me. I’ll watch the film and try to be better. But you gotta learn on the fly and pick up things quickly. As I said, I have to be better to start that.”
Battling Golden State’s Defensive Blitzes
Beyond the turnovers and second-quarter struggles, Reaves and the rest of the Lakers roster repeatedly ran into trouble dealing with the Warriors’ aggressive blitzes and double teams. Those defensive schemes fueled a night where the Lakers racked up 20 total turnovers.
While giving credit to veteran leadership on the opposing bench, Reaves broke down how the team intends to adjust. “Draymond is one of the best defensive engines in the entire NBA and he’s been doing it for a long time,” Reaves said of Draymond Green. “They were up to touch but wouldn’t really kind of shock until we were inside the 3-point line. We just gotta be able to get behind the big with the big rolling and trust them to make plays. Tonight, we just didn’t really get too many advantages out of that. We’ll be better.”
The schedule offers no breathing room for Los Angeles moving forward. The team faces the Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat in a demanding back-to-back set on Sunday and Monday.
