Los Angeles Lakers 131, Toronto Raptors 125
Let’s start with the positives.
Ja’Kobe Walter made his NBA debut on Friday night after being sidelined for the past month with an AC joint injury suffered before training camp. It wasn’t a revelatory, awe-inspiring first showing from the 20-year-old shooting guard, but Walter was solid.
His first shot attempt came via a three-pointer in the corner, which he side-stepped into and missed. Moments earlier, he was shaken off by Austin Reeves who took him to the hoop at the other end for a bucket in what was a rough start for the rookie from Baylor.
But Walter settled in after that, using a screen from Jonathan Mogbo to create enough space for a layup that connected with Reeves for an and-1, the first points of his career. He showed the hustle the Raptors were talking about with an impressive chase block from Rui Hachimura in the second quarter and battled two Lakers for an offensive rebound to set up an Ochai Agbaji bucket.
After falling behind by 26 in the first half, Toronto stormed back in the third and cut Los Angeles’ lead to single digits thanks to a scoring chance from RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl. Walter also intervened, coming on midway through the frame and working a pick-and-roll with Mogbo before delivering an impressive look-away pass to Chris Boucher who cut to the bucket from the corner.
The fact that Jamal Shead and Mogbo have played so well early in their rookie seasons will increase the pressure on Walter to do the same. It’s understandable considering Walter was the No. 19 pick in the draft, but Walter is the youngest of the trio with the most growth still to come.
Walter finished his debut with five points and six rebounds and was a plus-four in almost 21 minutes.
RJ Barrett won’t replace Scottie Barnes as the Raptors’ No. 1 pick, but the Canadian forward is showing there’s more to his game if Toronto needs to fill its plate with opportunities.
The problem for Barrett has always been offensive efficiency. He hasn’t had a problem averaging 20 points per game during his career, but it’s the way he scores those points that hasn’t been particularly effective.
However, that has changed recently.
Barrett tried to bring the Raptors back in the second half, pulling Toronto within six in the fourth quarter, beating James off the dribble and finishing through contact for the three-point play. He hit a 3-pointer in the corner a quarter earlier to get the Raptors within seven, but Toronto was never able to fully come back.
A pair of three-pointers from Hachimura in the fourth gave the Lakers a 12-point lead, from which Los Angeles never looked back.
A pair of 3-pointers from Gradey Dick late in the fourth quarter saw Barrett set a new career high for assists, finishing the night with 33 points on 14-for-22 shooting to go with 12 assists. Dick, meanwhile, set a new career-high with 31 points on 13-for-26 shooting.
LeBron James set it up before the game.
Before tip-off Friday, James posted a photo of himself on Instagram wearing a Scream mask with the caption “Live from LeBronto.” To be honest, he was pretty spot on. James jerseys filled the arena as oohs and ahhs broke out every time the 39-year-old did something impressive.
There was also plenty to be impressed with against Toronto.
James doesn’t move like he once did, or at least he didn’t have to against these Raptors, but he’s still fully capable of putting on a show. He backed DJ Carton into an unfair mismatch before turning around and scoring on the hoop. His highlights of the night were a pair of passes to Anthony Davis, first behind the back out of the pick-and-roll to find Davis and later a pin-point alley to Davis for two.
James had a chance for what would have been a wide-open transition dunk, but Hachimura overthrew him, causing a chorus of boos from fans wanting to see another James slam dunk.
Bronny James saw the final few seconds of regulation on Friday, much to the appreciation of the James fans in attendance. But the elder James finished his trip to Toronto with 27 points and 10 assists in 36 minutes.
Toronto’s defense simply hasn’t been good enough this season.
It’s one thing to be young, injured and inexperienced, but even the Raptors have acknowledged that it can’t be as bad as it has been. And yet, the first half against the Lakers was one of the worst defensive games Toronto has played all season.
Los Angeles is good, very good, but it can’t be as bad as it was. Toronto burned its first timeout just 76 seconds into the game after a pair of defensive miscues by Gradey Dick, putting the Lakers ahead 7-0. In the half alone, the Lakers scored 76 points on 62% shooting, while Toronto offered little to no resistance.
Toronto isn’t that bad. It was evident in the second half when the Raptors did much better and managed to claw their way back into things. But a start like Toronto had on Friday is simply impossible to overcome.
The Raptors will be at it again Saturday night when DeMar DeRozan and the Sacramento Kings come to town for the retirement of Vince Carter’s No. 15 in the rafters of Scotiabank Arena.
