LOS ANGELES — Despite a relatively healthy Anthony Davis and LeBron James still playing at an elite level at age 39, the Lakers only have a mildly successful 24-18 record.
In the powerhouse Western Conference, that’s just good for 7th place, which means the Lakers are not an outright playoffs team and, at this pace, would require to go through the play-in tournament to make the post-season.
After an impressive 134-110 rout of the Blazers on Sunday night at the Crypto.com Arena, head coach Darvin Ham addressed the things his team needs to continue doing in order to make a strong push for the playoffs.
“Regardless of who we are playing, we need to establish an identity on both ends of the floor . Aside from that , I think, the top priority for us is to come out and establish a consistent manner of which we want to play, and like, how we want to attack offensively,” Ham told reporters on his post-game presser.
Led by D’Angelo Russell’s 34-point output, LA stormed to a 67-54 lead at the break and never let up the gas on the way to a blowout victory.
Against an over-matched Blazers, the Lakers showed the attack mentality Ham hopes they can keep up.
LeBron James added 28 points, while Anthony Davis had a solid double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Austin Reaves pitched in 15 for the Lakers, who shot a high 54.7 percent from the field (47 of 86).
Portland got 17 points from Jerami Grant and couln’t overcome a tough road test where they shot only 31.9 percent from three-point range (9-of-29).
Ham also addressed the rumors hovering above the Lakers ahead of the February 8 trading deadline.
“Absolutely,” was Darvin’s response to the question on whether the Lakers have enough to win.
He did, however, emphasize how important it is for the support cast to help Lebon and A.D.
“Play your part, be supportive, but also be a threat yourself,” Ham said. “Different guys gotta step up and not be afraid to make plays.”
