Throughout the regular season, Dime will take a longer than 280 characters look at a few key notes and stats during some of the league’s most important matchups. Next up: The Lakers overtime loss to the Spurs.
LOS ANGELES – It was almost four minutes into the second quarter before LeBron James had his first basket against the Spurs on Monday night. While he still affected the game in other ways as he always does — namely through finesse and passing — on this night, with two starters suspended following a spit-filled fight against the Rockets in their home opener, James was fighting instead to try to keep the Lakers from going 0-3.
Fans and members of the press seemed surprised at the slow start. For all the excitement surrounding LeBron’s move west, there was still an aura of mystery. Admittedly many Lakers fans weren’t paying super close attention to those 4 p.m. local start games that James was playing in during the regular season before Christmas over the past few years, the ones that led to a slow start in Miami in Year 1, or trades and a coaching change and all sorts of drama in his second go-round in Cleveland. Instead, they were exposed to the Legend of LeBron, carefully cultivated through short videos, tweets about the Flying Death Machine, and the full power of the Nike branding arsenal.
“When the legend becomes fact,” reporter Maxwell Scott (Carleton Young) says in John Ford’s 1962 film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, “print the legend.”
What matters not are the slow early quarter performances, the cold shooting nights, or even the lack of intensity on defense. Instead, LeBron has increasingly become known for his signature moments, the ones you can see a dozen times as you sleeplessly scroll through Instagram at 2 a.m., entranced, seeing over and over again as if set adrift in a ocean and met with a starless sky. How he came to that moment is inconsequential; the moment was present, it was distilled down, and this is what he was known as.
In a lot of ways, James embodies what it means to be millennial when the sneering vitriol of the word is scrubbed clean. He’s self-made, has complete control over his public narrative, has a successful second career through his various business ventures, and can show us exactly what he wants to show us publicly on social media without the danger of being sucked into the depression that comes from that endless feed.
LeBron is the influencer’s influencer, with the work ethic and talent to back it up, and the third act of his career more closely resembles a meticulously filtered post. That’s what Monday night’s shot was, another in a series of enviable posts; if everyone wanted to Be Like Mike in the 90s, Everyone Clicks Like on LeBron’s plays now.
Lakers’ LeBron James on his game-tying shot: “I got to my shot and trusted it… Once I step in the gym, my vision is clear. That don’t mean I’m going to make them all the time.” pic.twitter.com/iaS7KgoKCX
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) October 23, 2018
The problem, of course, is that no one’s life — or career — only exists as a grid of brightly colored photos. There are always struggles and challenges in building the legend, and Lakers fans were met with those even as James delivered his first awe-inspiring feat with a three-pointer to send Los Angeles to overtime to a raucous crowd. He had five turnovers, only made one of his seven shots from deep outside of that dazzling dagger to send the game to overtime, and had a disastrous overtime period that saw the Lakers blow a six-point lead with 55 seconds to play. Namely, James missed back-to-back free throws with just under 13 seconds remaining that would’ve given Los Angeles a three-point lead and a true chance to steal their first win of the season.
When the next spectacular play happens, the missed free throws and sloppy defense will once again fade to grayscale, and the Legend of LeBron will continue to grow.
Onto the notes:
Give Kuz A Chance: Kyle Kuzma was challenged by Luke Walton in practice leading up to his insertion into the starting lineup following the suspensions of Rajon Rondo and Brandon Ingram, and he came through. Kuzma delivered the sort of offensive night that made him seemingly untouchable during Kawhi Leonard trade talks by showcasing a dizzying array of scoring moves. He finished with 37 points (tying a game high) and tied LeBron for the most shots on the team. He was confident inside and out and clearly had the green light on a night where the team tried just about every lineup imaginable. While this is a feeling out period for LeBron, it’s also a feeling out period for all the young guys as they seek to establish their roles in the new reality. Kuzma looks to be running with the opportunity.
Trick Or Treat: Much was made of the relative betrayal that DeMar DeRozan may have felt in being shipped off to San Antonio in the Leonard deal, but the new colors suit him. It didn’t take long to see the impact Gregg Popovich’s system and coaching has had on DeRozan, who is notorious for never settling and always trying to level up like a Final Fantasy player in search of a Golden Chocobo. It’s shown in his passing early on, as he set a career high in assists on Monday night with 14.
“That was always the next part of my game,” DeRozan said in the locker room on Monday night, “I really wanted to elevate. I know I can score. I want to that player that could score at a high level but also make his teammates better. Put trust in them at a high level as well, man. I just want to make the game fun. Coming out in moments like tonight, them guys know no matter if I got rolling or if I’m struggling, I’m going to find them regardless. Just a part of my game I’m more comfortable with.”
He shot just 11-for-29 from the floor (still finishing with 32 points), but he can do more to affect the game on cold nights than he was able to in Toronto if he continues to get those dimes.
Where There’s A Williams, There’s A Way: It’s no secret that the Lakers need help in the post, especially if there’s going to continue to be a tight whistle from officials as players adjust to how games are being called. Walton tried a little bit of everything, including a nightmarish stretch for Ivaca Zubac where he drew five fouls in five minutes. But he might have something in two-way player Johnathan Williams, who showed a spark and athleticism in his 14 minutes once he was called into duty.
“He was really, really good tonight down that stretch,” Walton said after the game, “and I’m happy for him. He was out there just playing basketball and making reads. He’s not afraid of the moment.”
The Lakers are not going to get by with JaVale McGee playing 30 minutes a night, and unless something suddenly clicks in the small-ball five Michael Beasley or Kuzma lineups, someone else is going to have to answer the call. That might be Williams.
The Forbes List: The Spurs have a habit of developing players who seemingly come out of nowhere to become steady NBA players with long careers, with Bryn Forbes showing why he belongs on that list. The third-year man out of Michigan State (by way of Cleveland State) has looked more than comfortable in the starter’s role, and showed killer instinct down the stretch for San Antonio, including a critical three and layup in overtime. He’s got a pretty shot, and seems to be absorbing all the knowledge and tricks that come from being around guys like Tony Parker, Patty Mills, and Manu Ginobili the past couple years.
“Obviously being a two guard naturally he’s come a long way confidence-wise and believing himself that he’s obviously a big time player in that position for us,” Mills said after the win. “But I think to make that move to a point guard, which he’s not familiar with at all, even builds on his confidence to play that position which is totally different. Now he’s running the team, telling guys where to go, running sets. I’m happy for him. He’s come a long way in two years and obviously the couple games that we’ve played this year, but we’re all helping him out too, making sure because this is a different situation.”
The Spurs will give up a lot of points this year, but they’ll evolve into a more potent offense with Mills getting more minutes and DeRozan in the fold. There’s a place for Forbes as long as he’s willing to take it.
Turn Back The Clock: It’s been awhile since Staples got as loud as it did when the Lakers made their comeback, cutting an eight-point lead down and forcing overtime with LeBron’s memorable three. But that’s nothing new to DeRozan, who recalled the last time he heard Staples rocking like this.
“I played against Kobe Bryant here,” DeRozan said. “One of the greatest games I ever played against Kobe was a comeback here where he forced overtime. So yeah, I’ve heard it pretty loud here before.”
That game was a 118-116 Lakers win over the Raptors, also in overtime, on March 8, 2013. The Lakers trailed by 10 heading into the fourth quarter and tied the game with 5.5 seconds to play, and Rudy Gay (now DeRozan’s teammate in San Antonio) missed a chance at a game-winner in regulation. Kobe had 41 points and 12 assists in the comeback win.
