Tag: Unlock

LOS ANGELES—The Lakers‘ game against the 6-35 Washington Wizards on Tuesday night was a winnable one.

The matchup isn’t exactly a “tale of two teams,” but the Lakers are miles ahead of the league’s worst team as they made it 11 straight defeats for Washington, waltzing to a 111-88 victory.

When looking at why the Lakers dominated, the usual suspects stood out. Anthony Davis led the team in scoring and rebounding with 29 and 16, respectively, and LeBron James messed around and got a triple-double.

Their performance explains why the Lakers won, but one of the reasons it came so easily? Dorian Finney-Smith.

The Lakers traded for DFS near the end of December, and his transition has been hectic. It involved a cross-country move, wildfires devastating Los Angeles County and the birth of his baby boy.

“It’s been a crazy two, three weeks, but I get to play the game I love,” Finney-Smith said after the win.

Through it all, he’s had to learn on the fly, understand his new role and try and help this team win games. Tuesday was the culmination of everything the Lakers were hoping to achieve by acquiring Finney-Smith.

He was quick on the perimeter, contesting shots, switching when necessary and communicating with his teammates to ensure everyone was in the right place.

Regardless of his shots going in or not, DFS provides a baseline level of quality defense. But against the Wizards, his offense showed up as well.

Although he only took two shots in the first quarter, he made them count. He hit both of his corner 3-pointers, one from the right and the other from the left.

In the second, he hit his third 3-pointer, remaining perfect on the night and helping the Lakers enter the half up by 10. DFS played just under 12 minutes through two quarters, the seventh-most minutes played by a Laker at that point.

Lakers head coach JJ Redick mentioned pregame that they’ve been forced to restrict Finney-Smith. He’s been on a minutes limit due to an ankle injury that predates him joining the Lakers.

“It’s been hard because he’s been on a restriction since we got him,” Redick said. “So, just having to kind of navigate that and try to save him, save those like four, five minutes for the end of the game, it’s been challenging. We got word today that we can up his minutes from 20 to 24, so that helps…I think as the season progresses, we hope that that minute total gets back up to kind of what he was doing in Brooklyn, about 29-30 minutes a game. That’s kind of what we’re all hoping for.”

This is the first time the Lakers have mentioned any kind of minutes restriction for DFS. It’s also interesting to note that he’s now allowed to increase his minutes from 20 to 24 but has played 24 or more minutes in three of the six games he’s played as a Laker.

“Under a minute restriction, it’s tough, sometimes,” Finney-Smith said postgame. “You’re definitely trying to find your groove with a team. Today I probably played for the longest stretch in that first half. It felt like my lungs were going to collapse, but it’s been fun man, playing with these guys, just trying to collect some wins.”

Once the second half began, his jumper continued to flow like water. DFS scored two points in the third and five in the fourth to close out the Wizards for good and ensured the team’s defensive intensity stayed at a respectable level.

Finney-Smith displayed countless examples of why he is such a valuable player for a winning team against the Wizards. One moment that stood out and could easily be forgotten happened in the fourth.

With 9:18 left, DFS inbounded the ball to Austin Reaves and located himself in the corner.

Positioned in the high post with the ball, LeBron received a screen from Jaxson Hayes. Finney-Smith saw this and moved from the corner to the wing. James found him for a good look from three, which he knocked down.

On the very next defensive possession, DFS didn’t get the deflection on a Bub Carrington pass, but by raising his arms and remaining active, he caused the pass to be erratic and off-target.

The Wizards didn’t get a good look from the pass and rushed a corner 3-pointer to try to beat the shot clock. They failed to do so, resulting in an airball and another Washington turnover.

The Lakers were already up by 12 before this sequence, but DFS made it a 15-point game and kept Los Angeles in full control. These are winning plays and the kind of momentum killers that good teams execute on and bad teams fumble regularly.

Thanks to the play of DFS, the Lakers never let go of the proverbial rope and ended up with their largest margin of victory on the season.

With just as much of the season in front of them as behind them, L.A. has plenty of work left to do. They sit at 23-18, good enough for the sixth seed but far from the ultimate goal of title contention.

Whether L.A. continues to climb the mountain that is the West and reaches the summit of an NBA Finals appearance in June remains to be seen. If they do get there, it’ll be because everyone on the roster buys into and accepts their role.

In just a few short weeks, DFS has shown why Redick has been a fan of his for years and, in Tuesday’s win, he demonstrated why all Lakers fans should love him too.

The Lakers will always be competitive with LeBron and AD leading the way. But the best version of this team features DFS playing at the level he did against the Wizards.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.