Los Angeles Lakers: What we liked, loved and hated vs. the Brooklyn Nets
By Jason Reed
Loved: The Los Angeles Lakers dominated by the rim
The biggest positive takeaway from this game is the same thing we saw in the Lakers’ preseason opener against the Warriors: they dominated in the paint and around the rim and were the much-better team down low.
This is going to be a huge part of the Lakers’ winning gameplan this season as they have size and two talented, sizable guys in LeBron and Davis that present a challenge unlike anything else that any other team has to offer.
The Lakers had the slight blocks differential, with 10 blocks to nine, which was fueled by a five-block game from JaVale McGee off the bench. McGee scored six points with 10 rebounds in his 19 minutes of action.
Davis had two blocks, Dwight Howard, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso all had one. Howard ended up with eight boards and five points in 22 minutes.
All in all, the Lakers had 46 points in the paint opposed to the Nets’ 28 and had the rebound advantage. Although the rebound advantage was slim, the Lakers hauled in 13 offensive rebounds, which is a recipe for winning basketball in the regular season.