Lakers Quiet Trade Rumors With Win Over Celtics … for Now
Darvin Ham probably has not smiled that wide in weeks. Months, maybe. Don’t grin too much when you are a piñata for critics. Yet in the closing minutes of the Los Angeles Lakers’ win over the Boston Celtics on Thursday—a runaway winner for the most improbable victory of the season—the embattled Lakers coach flashed a smile that could be seen from Boston to Burbank, Calif.
“No one probably believed we had a chance tonight,” Ham said. “All these guys, man, they really stepped up and played for one another. It was a balanced effort.”
Ham needed this. The Lakers needed this. Ham’s seat hasn’t been warm lately. It’s been scorching. The second-year head coach has taken the brunt of the heat for L.A.’s sub-.500 record. His rotations have been criticized. His play-calling. His schemes. Internet sleuths freeze-framing zoomed-in videos are convinced the Lakers have tuned him out.
Maybe. Not Thursday. The Lakers entered the game riding a two-game losing streak. The loss Monday to the Houston Rockets was bad. The loss Tuesday in Atlanta was worse. On Thursday, LeBron James was out. Anthony Davis, too. The Lakers were expected to lose by 20. They won by nine.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves drives the ball against Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum in the first quarter at TD Garden in Boston on Thursday.
David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports
Said Ham, “I think tonight shows the ability to overcome adversity.”
Sure did. It was a great moment for the Lakers. But was it more than that? A week out from the NBA’s trade deadline and L.A. has some big decisions to make. The defense has been bad. The offense has been worse. They are aging, lack athleticism and can’t shoot. The team that went 16–7 after the All-Star break last season has been a shell of it more than halfway through this one.
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Trade rumors involving the Lakers are everywhere. Dejounte Murray? It would cost Austin Reaves and a first-round pick, but maybe. Bruce Brown? Good role player but we know Toronto always has a steep asking price. Zach LaVine? Great scorer but how many contracts would the Lakers have to combine to match his?
[NBA Trade Deadline Tracker: Stay on top of the latest moves]
Improvement, ultimately, might have to come internally ...
- With D’Angelo Russell. Russell had a rough start to the season. But he was terrific in January, averaging 22.7 points, connecting on 46% of his threes. Against Boston, Russell struggled with his shot (5 of 20) but collected 14 assists, coming two rebounds shy of a triple-double.
“Y’all know I can score,” Russell said. “But I can pass, too, and I love passing. So find a way to just impact winning. I think that’s when you get that trust from your coach, it allows everybody, one through 15, to go out there and impact winning.”
- With Austin Reaves. Reaves scored a season-high 32 points against Boston, connecting on 10 of his 18 shots and seven of his 10 threes. It’s been an uneven season for Reaves, who has bounced in and out of the starting lineup. On Wednesday, when the Lakers arrived in Boston, Ham sat down with him. He thanked Reaves for his commitment, for his scrappiness, for his willingness to do whatever it takes to win.
“He’s been nothing short of amazing since he’s been in a Laker uniform,” Ham said. “And specifically since I’ve been here as the head coach.”
- With Jarred Vanderbilt, who set the tone with defense and energy before leaving with a foot injury late in the first half.
- With Jaxson Hayes, who delivered a 16-point, 10-rebound double double filling in for Davis.
- With Rui Hachimura, who scored 15 points off the bench.
Vanderbilt’s defensive tone and energy were key for the Lakers against the Celtics.
David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports
For most of the season, the Lakers had been missing the collective effort that drove them to the conference finals last season. On Thursday, they got it back.
“It wasn’t nothing special,” Reaves said. “We went out there and competed our ass off.”
Ham saw it. More importantly, James and Davis saw it. James will start in the All-Star Game in a few weeks. Davis will come off the bench. At 39, James remains one of the NBA’s best closers. Davis, who has missed just four games this season, is a two-way menace. On most nights, the Lakers will have the two best players on the floor. What’s been missing is consistency from the guys playing alongside them.
“It was great that those guys got to see it up close, see how hard their teammates fought for them,” Ham said. “Because it’s all of us. It is like this guy played well, but the Lakers still did this or the Lakers still lost. We’re all involved in this. We are all representing the franchise and represent it proudly. So it was good for them to see their guys stepping up and playing some good basketball.”
Indeed. Perhaps success will be fleeting. The New York Knicks await the Lakers on Saturday. No one is playing better than them. The good vibes from a win in Boston will be blown away with a beating in New York.
But maybe—maybe—a win like this can be a springboard. Reaves had a terrific game. Russell has had a terrific month. Gabe Vincent, a key signing last summer, could return after the All-Star break. For weeks, the expectation has been that the Lakers will break this team up. On Thursday, they gave the front office a reason to keep them together.
“They can’t be paralyzed mentally in thinking they got to do things to get ’Bron and AD the ball,” Ham said. “Explore your talent. That’s going to lighten the load.”
