The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Golden State Warriors 126-1116, handing the Dubs their first loss of the preseason. Neither squad had their top talents in the linuep, with Draymond Green the lone All-Star on either squad who took the court. Still, the Lakers came out on top in the preseason battle of shorthanded rivals.
Brandin Podziemski was hesitant looking for his own shot early, putting more pressure on Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green to initiate the offensive action. Without Steph Curry’s elite gravity to aid Green, his offensive .
Kuminga had some positive flashes. He finished the game with 6 assists, and had some other good passes that his teammates failed to convert. As a scorer, Kuminga racked up 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field, including a made three, some strong moments posting up smaller defenders, and a highlight dunk of the preseason. However, he also had 5 turnovers, including some unforced errors, and failed to record a single rebound.
Without Curry tiring the Lakers on defense or the defensive acumen of Jimmy Butler and Al Horford, the Warriors defense was abysmal. Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimua, and Deandre Ayton scored a combined 50 points on 19-for-28 shooting from the field. Reaves had no problem scoring on either Buddy Hield or Podziemski. If there’s one area the Dubs could still use an upgrade, even when healthy, it’s defensively on the perimeter.
Without a strong shooting first half from either Buddy Hield or Quinten Post, the Warriors were trounced by the Lakers in the first two quarters and trailed 63-46 at the half. Podziemski began to show signs of life late in the second quarter, however, and that would carry over into the third, when the Dubs began turning things around.
Podziemski came out aggressive in the second half. His scoring burst and shooting confidence led to the most impressive offensive stretch of the day from the Warriors. As the Lakers defense began bending to Podziemski, it left shooters, like Post, wide open opportunities. It also lessened the creation load on Kuminga and allowed him to play with a more controlled aggression.
Podz finished with a game-high 23 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds on 10-for-16 shooting from the field in 25 minutes of action. He unsurprisingly had a Warriors-best +6 plus/minus.
Golden State would eventually cut the Lakers lead down to three points, and kept within striking distance for much of the second half. However, the Dubs were unable to make a final push with both teams deploying lineups effectively representing their third and fourth teams in the final quarter. LJ Cryer was once again an offensive spark, scoring 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting (3-for-5 from three) in 10 minutes, but he would not lead a miracle comeback.
Among the remaining Warriors, Trayce Jackson-Davis had the most impressive final stat line, recording 14 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 assist, and 1 steal in 20 minutes of action on 7-for-9 shooting from the field.
