The Los Angeles Lakers dropped to 2-4 on the season Saturday night, as they struggled against one of the top defenses in the league in the Utah Jazz, falling 96-81.
So far the Lakers biggest problem on the season has been their lack of shooting, as only the New York Knicks rank worse than the Lakers, who are shooting 27.8 percent from three-point range so far on the season.
One of the Lakers who is struggling to get his shot going is rookie point guard Lonzo Ball as he is shooting just 31.1 percent from the field and 28.1 percent from three.
It’s obvious that the Lakers want to get out in transition and run with Ball at the point to make up for their shooting deficiencies, and it has worked as they are one of the best transition teams in the league.
They lack a true half court offense though, and after Saturday’s game Ball said they are still trying to find their identity, via Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters:
Zo: "We’re trying to find our identity still, we’re trying to run but some of the possessions, we’re getting caught in half court” (on SPSN)
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) October 29, 2017
The Lakers lost their best three shooters from last season in D’Angelo Russell, Nick Young and Lou Williams, so they are still trying to find their replacements as offseason acquisitions Brook Lopez and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope haven’t been the answer yet.
Ball took the blame for the loss against the Jazz, but the fact of the matter is that Ball has done a good job of finding open teammates all season, whether in transition, in drive and kick situations, or in the pick and roll, but his teammates often aren’t able to convert open looks into points.
It will be interesting to see if Lakers head coach Luke Walton makes any changes to his starting lineup or rotations to get the offense going.