LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Lakers-Rockets series might have four of the NBA’s players who are next to impossible to imitate. That doesn’t stop coaches from trying. Both the Lakers and Rockets have used scout teams to prepare their strategies for the series, using end-of-the-bench players to replicate All-Star counterparts. Houston coach Mike D’Antoni…
Lakers, Rockets rely on scout teams to plot out series adjustments — Press Telegram
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — So much fatigue. So much for playing tiny lineups. So much for an entire organization feeling crushing pressure to advance. The Lakers won the tip-off against the small-ball Houston Rockets in Game 1 of their second-round series Friday, and then every perceived advantage they had entering the night vanished. The…
Lakers fail to match the energy, speed of revved up Rockets in Game 1 — Daily News
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — With Rajon Rondo, the story is always refracted depending on the eye of the beholder. Some fans saw his return – an eight-point, four-assist, four-turnover debut after a month and a half on the shelf – as a rusty disappointment. But Rondo’s Laker teammates hope it’s just a starting point for…
Lakers’ Rajon Rondo tries to shake the rust in uneven return — Daily News
Houston used speed and penetration to get into the paint and break down the Lakers.
Speedy small-ball Rockets run past Lakers to 112-97 Game 1 win — ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The first morning a then-brand new Lakers coaching staff assembled in the same room last summer in a Beverley Hills hotel, they needed a way to feel each other’s basketball philosophies — a common talking point to start understanding how they each saw the game. Frank Vogel’s ice-breaker with his…
Lakers prep for James Harden, a unique threat on a unique Rockets team — Press Telegram
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — There are times Danny Green needs support, but there’s times he pushes it away, too. Being inside the NBA bubble at Disney World — away from the family and people you love — for nearly two months has a mental toll which is sometimes difficult to articulate. But nothing quite…
Lakers’ Danny Green reveals how NBA players cope with mental toll of the bubble — Daily News
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Kyle Kuzma rang in his first career playoff series win with a glass of wine during Sunday’s early morning hours. The 4-1 series win over the Portland Trail Blazers wasn’t just the sweet cap of an especially long and tense week in the NBA bubble, but also a marker of…
Kyle Kuzma, Alex Caruso have built defensive confidence after Lakers’ first-round win — Daily News
Mental health of the players in the NBA has become an even more consistent topic inside the bubble.
LeBron James admits to wishing he could leave NBA bubble a few times — LeBron Wire
The mental health of all the NBA players has become a hot button topic this week after Paul George spoke about his own struggles with anxiety and depression, as well as the Milwaukee Bucks-led walkout earlier in the week in reaction to the shooting of Jacob Blake by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. In the immediate aftermath of the NBA work stoppage on Wednesday, there were reports that LeBron James was considering leaving. After closing out the Blazers on Saturday night, LeBron opened up about his mental state, saying it wasn’t the first time he thought “I’ve got to get the hell out of here.”
Lakers’ LeBron James on whether he was ready to leave bubble after Bucks refused to play: “I’ve had numerous nights & days thinking about leaving. I think everyone has, including you (media) guys. There’s not 1 person who hasn’t (thought), “I’ve got to get the hell out of here.’” pic.twitter.com/qKIZzlzRp1
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) August 30, 2020
James has been more open over the past week in talking about his own struggles inside the bubble. He shared how much he misses his family on Instagram on Saturday, with he and the Lakers closing in on their second full month inside the NBA bubble.
The Lakers will have a few days more to rest as they wait to play the winner of the Rockets-Thunder series, which the Rockets now lead 3-2 heading into Monday’s Game 6.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — It took three days longer to close the series than the Lakers expected, and for three-and-a-half quarters, the Trail Blazers kept hope alive that it would take more. But that very faint flame was extinguished by a cruising Anthony Davis, driving into a clear lane in transition on the other…
LeBron James, Anthony Davis dazzle as Lakers top Trail Blazers in first-round series — Daily News
Editor’s note: This is the Tuesday, Aug. 25 edition of the Purple & Bold Lakers newsletter from reporter Kyle Goon, who is among the few reporters with a credential inside the NBA bubble. To receive the newsletter in your inbox, sign up here. LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — It should have been about basketball. It should have…
For Lakers’ LeBron James, Jacob Blake’s shooting is bigger issue than a big Game 4 victory — Press Telegram
In the last two games, Danny Green if 5-of-8 from three. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is 5-of-12. The Lakers have found their touch
Three Things to Know: The Lakers have found their shooting touch — ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is defended by Portland Trail Blazers forward Carmelo Anthony during the first half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Kim Klement/Pool Photo via AP) Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is helped off the…
LeBron James scores 38 as Lakers knock out Blazers in Game 3, take 2-1 series lead — Daily News
The view from left field 