The Los Angeles Lakers came together as a team to pick up a big win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. One of the biggest contributors was Troy Brown Jr. who knocked down 7-of-10 shots including four 3-pointers to finish with 19 points and four assists.
Brown has been up and down at different points this season. He has been one of the more reliable role players for the Lakers in general, but has had some rough nights as well, including the team’s game the previous night in Memphis. Against the Grizzlies, Brown missed 7-of-8 shots including all four of his 3s and finished with just two points.
But it was that poor performance that motivated Brown against the Thunder. The Lakers wing said that he was disappointed in his play against the Grizzlies and he wanted to make sure he was locked in against the Thunder, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“I think for me just yesterday I was a little disappointed in my play. Obviously not being able to knock down shots I feel like during those runs that they had, if I could’ve knocked down those shots I feel like it would’ve stopped the bleeding a little bit. I was getting good looks, just wasn’t hitting them so today I wanted to really be locked in and make sure I was knocking them down. That’s all, make sure we get the W and make sure I was doing my part.”
The Lakers as a whole seemed extremely focused, especially on a night in which they were without LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and D’Angelo Russell. After the loss in Memphis, the Lakers were able to easily pinpoint their issues and Brown believes the accountability of this group is great and allows them to improve on their mistakes:
“I would say the accountability. Just coming into it, our talk was short, it was simple; 26 turnovers is unacceptable. They literally scored all their points in transition in that third quarter so for us it made it very obvious what we needed to clean up. We had a couple turnovers today, we went to the locker room and talked about it. I just think more of the communication between everybody getting here is getting better just cuz we’re getting to know each other a little more.”
The entire Lakers team is focused on accomplishing that goal of making the playoffs. Everyone is locked in and prepared to do whatever is necessary making it easier to see those mistakes and work on correcting them immediately, which allows the Lakers to continue to improve with each game.
Dennis Schroder believes Lakers will make the playoffs in 2023
Not only are the Lakers focused on making the playoffs, but the entire locker room is of the belief that it will absolutely happen.
Dennis Schroder, who led the Lakers with 26 points in Oklahoma City, all but guaranteed that they’ll be in the postseason, noting that it was the goal from the beginning of the season and he believes it “200%”. If they are able to make it, Schroder will likely be a big reason why.
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