Lakers Vs. Grizzlies Game 2

Three Key Lessons From The Lakers Vs. Grizzlies Game 2

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The Lakers seemed prepared to take a 2-0 lead home to Los Angeles after beating the Grizzlies in the final minutes of Game 1 and learning that Ja Morant wouldn’t be able to suit up for Game 2 only hours before tip-off. Instead, the Grizzlies won 103-93 to even the series at 1-1 and improve to 33-17 without Ja Morant across the last two regular seasons and playoffs.

Here are three things to remember from the Lakers’ second playoff game, which evened the series at one game apiece and sent it back to Los Angeles.

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Starting Out Slowly

As reported by Silverscreenandroll.com, first takeaway is to start slowly and not rush. The Lakers won Game 1 by 16, but they trailed by 6 at halftime of Game 2, and they had to make a dramatic comeback to win. After a slow start to Game 2, the Lakers have outscored the Grizzlies by 27 points in the second and third quarters combined to take a 2-0 series lead. When the play-in is factored in, the difference between the teams’ third- and fourth-quarter scores jumps to minus-32 and plus-44, respectively.

Starting Out Slowly
Starting Out Slowly

The Lakeshow has had a tougher time than they should have due to a lack of passion and decisiveness to open games, despite having two first-ballot hall of famers in their starting five.

To add insult to injury, a seven-seed that has been clicking for the past couple of months isn’t exactly entitled to the luxury of flipping the switch. They haven’t shown the kind of winning habits that will allow for a deep playoff run, let alone a championship, even if they manage to sneak by the Grizzlies without pushing the pedal to the metal for the full 48.

Take a look at the most recent events, which we have outlined in more depth on our website:

D’Lagging

D’Angelo Russell is at his best as a player when he is allowed to choose his own tempo. After eight years in the league, Russell has finally found his rhythm, setting new career highs in scoring and playmaking efficiency while also improving as a team defender thanks to his increased awareness of where he should be on the court at any given time. In Game 2, however, such was not the case. You can see the tweet by Kevin O’Connor with regard to this below.

He had trouble scoring against opponents with high-level players on the perimeter, regardless of the caliber of the squad, because of his obvious athletic limitations, especially his weak lower body, which limits his burst and balance to sustain contact.

D’Lo, for instance, faltered in the final two games of the regular season when facing the younger and spryer guards of Houston. D’Lo has continued this tendency into the playoffs, making just 10 of 37 field goal attempts in the Lakers’ three games since the regular season ended. The pattern of bad luck in the playoffs continued for him. Take a look at the tweet by Josh Eberley below.

D’Angelo Russell has continued to playmake at an elite level, with 19 assists to 7 mistakes in his most recent game, but the Lakers need more from him.

Optimistic Outlooks

While the Lakers started slowly and finished with a six-point deficit to the Grizzlies, they still had a chance to win the game despite scoring less than 100 points for the first time since 2023 and Xavier Tillman scoring more points than he ever has in an NBA game.

Rui Hachimura’s growing sense of comfort in purple and gold is on full display as he became the first Laker to score 20+ points off the bench in consecutive playoff games since Magic Johnson in 1996. If Ja Morant is unable to play in Game 3, the Lakers might replace Jarred Vanderbilt with him and move him into the starting lineup.

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