Toronto Raptors ( L )
As the defending NBA Champions, the Raptors were certainly out to prove a point in this game as many continue to write off their chances of repeating last seasons success.
In their second meeting this season the Raptors took the blowout victory 107-92 as the Lakers were left dead in the water. Both James and Davis struggled to get going as they had 7 and 1 respectively in the scoring column at the half. They would finish up with a combined 34 points as the Raptors went on a late run to close LA out.
Main Pro:
Bench Points: The Lakers season average for points off the bench currently sits a 39 PPG, this sees them land at 12th on the NBA’s leader board. In the game against the Raptors the second unit combined for 50 points, that’s 8 more points than the starting unit. This also saw them win the battle of the benches by a huge margin as the Raptors only managed 15 points off the pine.
Main Con:
Terrible 3 Point Shooting Again!: After shooting only 30% from beyond the arc against the Clippers, LA would have hoped for a much better showing against the Raps. The Lakers shot even worse in this game, finishing with a 3 point percentage of 25% from 40 shots. Players like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Danny Green are the main culprits here, but the percentage is not helped by Markieff Morris going 0/5 from beyond the arc in just 10 minutes on the floor. The whole team seemed rusty, something that they need to work out before the postseason.
