10/25: "Ball vs. Wall" - LAKERS vs. Washington Wizards 1st Half Open Thread and Discussion

It's a battle of point guards tonight! The 1st half open thread and discussion for the Lakers' matchup vs. the Washington Wizards on NBA Wednesday. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts on the game.

Q2

WAS 49 LAL 42

Well, John Wall tortured Lonzo Ball down the stretch...when Lonzo Ball was not guarding him. So far, the tweet by Marcin Gortat is not working out. When Ball is on Wall, no pun intended, he's kept him in check with some clean defense. Wall may have the speed, but Ball has done a good job closing out lanes to prevent Wall from further attacking the basket. The Wizards may have finished that quarter strong, but I like what I'm seeing overall from the Lakers. They're exploiting the paint and playing some really good defense for a young team that has given up 100+ points in the first three games. The only smear on this 1st half is that the Lakers started committing careless turnovers and it allowed the Wizards to come back. Jordan Clarkson, in particular, made some nice plays with Randle and Kuzma, but he's doing too much at the same time trying to be fancy with play making. The Wizards' best players in this game are not John Wall, Bradley Beal, or Otto Porter, but Jodie Meeks and Kelly Oubre. The Lakers' can live with that as long as they contain Washington's "Big 3." Particularly, they need to have a close eye on Meeks since he can be a game changer. If you knew from his Laker playing days, he has a tendency to catch fire when he gets a couple of three point shots going. The 2nd half will open up shortly.

Q1

WAS 18 LAL 23

If only Brewer didn't fumble that pass or if Kuzma just took that shot. But, so far, so good for the Lakers. I like the game plan that the Lakers are implementing early on this game. They are feeding Lopez inside the paint. As he takes on Gortat, Larry Nance Jr. is lurking inside to clean up some 2nd chance opportunities. 6-18 scoring in the paint are the stats so far in favor of the Lakers. I also liked the defensive activity. Lonzo is holding his own against John Wall and the rest of the team are making some shots more difficult for the Wizards.