The Los Angeles Lakers have been rolling since the league’s trade deadline, and they showed some terrific chemistry on social media following Tuesday night’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
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The Lakers clearly seem to be having fun with each other, and it’s a good sign, especially after such an important victory. Los Angeles went a game up on the Pelicans in the play-in tournament picture, and they took the season series between the two teams with Tuesday’s win.
Even with LeBron James out of the lineup, the Lakers are winning games, getting contributions up and down the roster to do so.
Since the trade deadline, the team is 9-5, with additions such as D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasley providing the team with a much-needed spark.
On Tuesday night, Beasley was the one who had a big game, scoring 24 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field and 7-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc. He was the Lakers’ second-leading scorer behind star Anthony Davis, who had 35 points and 17 rebounds against his former team.
Davis, who will miss Wednesday night’s game against the Houston Rockets, has done a great job leading the Lakers with James out due to a foot injury.
BREAKING: Anthony Davis will NOT play in tomorrow's game against the Houston Rockets.
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) March 15, 2023
Darvin Ham on AD sitting out: "He's not gonna play. He hasn't been cleared. … We made an organizational decision starting with our team doctors to hold him out of back-to-backs."
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) March 15, 2023
Lakers fans have to love how this team has looked over the past month, especially since the team has spent most of the season outside of the play-in tournament field in the Western Conference.
Rob Pelinka and the Lakers front office brought in more shooting and depth at the trade deadline, and in turn, the team has become much harder to stop.
Last night, five different Lakers (Beasley, Davis, Russell, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves) scored in double figures. That balance is going to make the team hard to stop in a play-in tournament or playoff scenario, especially if James is back in action.
Los Angeles is hoping to keep the momentum and good vibes from Tuesday’s win going into Wednesday’s road matchup with Houston.
The Rockets are one of the worst teams in the NBA this season, but they did beat the Boston Celtics in their last game on Monday night.
The Lakers and Rockets are scheduled to tip off at 5 p.m. PST in Houston on Wednesday.
