FSM Essential Recap: Lakers vs Kings - 8/13/2020

FSM Essential Recap: Lakers vs Kings

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The Los Angeles Lakers played the Sacramento Kings in their last game of the regular season Thursday morning. Although the Lakers ended up losing this game, no players were injured. It was the best news of the NBA restart for the Purple and Gold.

The final score in this game ended up being 136-122, with the Lakers falling to Sacramento. Lakers fans have nothing to worry about, as the majority of the Lakers’ main rotation didn’t see the floor.

Players that didn’t play for the Lakers include power forward Anthony Davis, small forward Kyle Kuzma, shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and point guard Alex Caruso. No serious injuries have been reported for any of these players.

One key player who did play was the King himself, LeBron James. James finished the game with 17 points, four assists, and three rebounds in 14 minutes of play. Because this was the last game of the regular season, LeBron only played in the first half.

The Lakers bench got all the minutes today, and they did an average job on the offensive end. Shooting guard Dion Waiters finished the game with 19 points (53% from the field), three rebounds, and five assists in 25 minutes. This is the production the Lakers hope for in the postseason from Dion Waiters. If Waiters can perform like this for the Lakers in the playoffs, their chances of winning the chip increase significantly.

Another role player that played well for Los Angeles is rookie point guard Talen Horton-Tucker. Horton-Tucker ended the game with 14 points, four rebounds, three assists, and three steals in 34 minutes. Games like these are the ones players like Horton-Tucker have to take advantage of, and he did just that. He has a minimal chance of playing in the playoffs, so we’ll see how he develops through the offseason.

Other vital contributors for the Lakers include the latest signee shooting guard J.R. Smith with 11 points, point guard Quinn Cook with 12 points, four rebounds and four assists, and power forward Markieff Morris with 14 points and five rebounds. Every Laker who played in the game scored at least a point for Frank Vogel’s team.

On the other hand, the Sacramento Kings handled business by getting their third and final win in the bubble. Although they won’t be receiving an invitation to the playoffs for the 14th straight year, a win against the top-seeded Lakers doesn’t hurt their situation in any way.

The top scorer for Sacramento was shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, known to his teammates BB-8. Bogdanovic went to work against LA, finishing the game with 27 points, six rebounds, nine assists, and two steals in 26 minutes of play. He was red hot from the 3-point line, too, finishing the game with 5 made threes out of 11 attempts.

Another key contributor to the win was shooting guard Buddy Hield. Hield is known around the league for his shooting ability, and that’s exactly what he put on display against LA. The 2020 NBA 3-Point Champion dropped 28 points, shot 58.8% from the field, and sunk eight three-pointers, going 57.1% from three-point land. He also grabbed five rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

Other notable performers for the Kings were point guard Cory Joseph with 13 points and power forward Nemanja Bjelica, who erupted for 15 points, eight rebounds, 13 assists, two steals, and a block. Kings forward Jabari Parker chipped in with 19 points (9-10, 90% shooting from the field), eight rebounds, and six assists, and former Indiana University point guard Yogi Ferrell had 11 points, two assists, and three steals.

The Lakers still don’t know who they are going to face in the first round. Once the play-in game concludes, we’ll have that answer. The Portland Trailblazers and Memphis Grizzlies play for the 8th and final seed tomorrow at 11:30 PST

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-Michael Dancy II – Franchise Sports Media

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