Inconsistent squads collide when LA Lakers battle Miami Heat
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Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James leads the team in assists per game (9.1) and ranks second in scoring (22.0) and rebounding (8.0).
PHOTO: AFP
MIAMI – The National Basketball Association (NBA) game between the Los Angeles Lakers and hosts Miami Heat on Dec 5 (Singapore time) appears to be a marquee matchup, but the NBA standings suggest otherwise.
Both teams have struggled to sustain momentum in the season’s early weeks, with the Lakers entering at 12-9 and the Heat coming in at 9-10. Each squad sit in a fringe play-off position – Los Angeles are ninth in the Western Conference, and Miami are seventh in the East.
“We’ve been good at times, and we’ve been poor at times,” Lakers star LeBron James said. “But that’s what to expect with a new system, new coaching staff, new players. We’re trying to work in new things.
“I wouldn’t say, ‘I’ll take it’. I never want to say that. But that’s our record, and we have to continue to get better on both sides of the floor.”
He leads Los Angeles in assists per game (9.1) and ranks second in scoring (22.0) and rebounding (8.0). He turns 40 on Dec 30 but is determined to play in all 82 regular-season games. The 22nd-year veteran last accomplished the feat during the 2017-18 season, when he finished his second stint with Cleveland.
Anthony Davis has shone for the Lakers, leading the team in scoring (27.8), rebounding (11.5), blocks (2.0) and steals (1.3). Austin Reaves chips in 16.7 points and 4.8 assists per game, while D’Angelo Russell has added 12.5 points plus 4.9 assists.
Russell returned to the starting line-up and led Los Angeles with 20 points in the 109-80 loss at Minnesota on Dec 2.
The Lakers’ top three-point shooters include Rui Hachimura (43.1 per cent) and rookie first-round pick Dalton Knecht (41.0 per cent).
Los Angeles have lost five of their last seven games, while Miami have dropped two straight and three of their last five. The Heat have never been more than two games below or one game above .500 this season.
Miami, who are just 4-4 at home, may be without star forward Jimmy Butler, who missed the 109-89 loss at Boston due to a knee injury. He has missed five of the Heat’s 19 games this season. He ranks second on the team in scoring (18.9) and third in assists (4.8).
Tyler Herro paces Miami with 23.7 points per game and shares the team lead in assists with Bam Adebayo (4.9).
Adebayo leads the Heat in rebounding (9.8) but is averaging just 15.6 points per game as his scoring continues to regress. He tallied 19.3 points per game last season after averaging 20.4 the year before.
Miami remain confident in their captain, however.
“I don’t think he’s struggling,” Herro said of Adebayo. “He is playing a great brand of basketball.
“He is impacting the game on the defensive end. Bam gets his looks, and he’s going to make shots. We know what he’s capable of.”
Heat forward Jaime Jaquez Jr added: “We’re not going to be who we need to be without Bam.”
Los Angeles and Miami have an intriguing history. The Lakers defeated the Heat in the Covid-affected 2020 NBA Finals, and Heat president Pat Riley is a former Lakers player and coach.
Meanwhile, Miami have not won an NBA title since James left in the summer of 2014 after he led them to two championships in four years. REUTERS
