In Friday night’s 102-91 Lakers loss to the Raptors, Kobe Bryant played a season-high 37 minutes. Coach Byron Scott said he wouldn’t get Kobe over 37 minutes, but he logged exactly 37:04 tonight.
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Scott said he and Bryant did not discuss playing more minutes Friday, but that he made a judgment call based on how Bryant was playing.
This Sunday’s game will see the Atlantic Division Toronto Raptors visit the Pacific Division Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center, with both teams looking for more consistency.
Los Angeles (6-6) has lost six of eight since a 4-0 start and Toronto (8-6) six of nine after winning a franchise-record five straight to begin the season. To what degree will the Lakers lean on rookie point guard D’Angelo Russell, second-year forward Julius Randle and second-year guard Jordan Clarkson to lay the groundwork of a potentially long-term future? “How can we get it to you?”Kyle Lowry torched the Lakers on Friday night with torrid three-point shooting”. Scott has said he’s not going to sacrifice wins to develop his young nucleus, which makes no sense on a 2-9 team. After Bryant played 36 minutes against Detroit, he joked that he didn’t look “forward to walking to the car” after that game. When asked about the minutes exceeding the original plan set forth, Scott remained adamant that he had not exceeded the limits set forth, as Bryant’s average minutes on the season remain in the 30-32 minutes range. DeMar DeRozan, meanwhile, was MIA for most of the night, and the caterwauling about his play would still be heard if not for his attractive spinning lay-up to ice the game.
Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson average 49.8 points per game, but other top starting backcourts, such as Toronto’s, Washington’s and even the electrifying Suns’ duo of Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight post fewer points than do the Trail Blazers.
“I thought he played better”, Scott said. He was hurt for most of the Rockets’ run to the Western Conference finals, and now the Rockets have just fired their coach. He’s going to do that every game.
“Beyond the injury, this game once again served to illustrate the Raptors” lack of offensive depth.
The Raptors offense looked very stagnant at times. Williams was the league’s Sixth Man of the Year in 2014-15, but was not offered a contract by the Raptors after the season. The Clippers will try to avoid a third consecutive setback when they host the scuffling Toronto Raptors on Sunday.
Randle showcased his playmaking (18 points on 6-of-9 shooting and 12 rebounds).
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Anthony picked up his third foul early in the second quarter and his fourth foul early in the third and was forced to watch much of the game from the bench. The Los Angeles Clippers continue to struggle, allowing 35.4 percent shooting from deep and giving up 77 points to opponents starters.
