On Sunday afternoon, the Los Angeles Lakers took on the Golden State Warriors on Day 2 of the California Classic at Chase Center. Just as they did the previous day, the Warriors got out to a quick start and held a commanding 49-34 lead at halftime. The Lakers couldn’t generate any offense and were taking some questionable shots.
Golden State used a balanced attack behind Ethan Thompson and Daeqwon Plowden to lead them to a 92-68 victory. For the Lakers, first round draft pick Dalton Knecht started slow once again but found a little rhythm toward the end of the first half and into the second. He finished with 12 points but only on 3/13. Not great. The Lakers second-round pick Bronny James was a late scratch with knee swelling. I don’t think the crowd chanting “Put In Bronny” all game knew that he was going to be inactive with the knee injury.
It was a dominating victory for Golden State. They have been by far the best team I have seen playing here at Chase Center this weekend.
Warriors 2-0 In Summer League
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The Warriors are off to a nice start in the 2024 summer league campaign. While summer league is more about player development rather than wins and losses, it’s still good to see a bunch of young guys contribute to winning basketball together, As of right now, it is impossible to speculate who might see playing alongside Steph Curry and company come the fall. However, they all look hungry to get that opportunity.
Former Oregon State Beaver Ethan Thompson led the team in scoring tonight with 22 points. Daeqwon Plowden added 14 points of his own. It was a very impressive showing from each of these two over the weekend. A big question is will each of these two still be getting a majority of the minutes when second-year players Brandin Podziemski and Trayce Jackson-Davis join the team in Las Vegas next week.
Golden State’s defense has been lights out the last two days. They were clamps in their 102-64 win versus the Miami Heat and once again today against LA. We’ll see if they carry over these performances when they face the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.
Lakers Fall To 0-2
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As stated earlier, the Summer League isn’t about the wins and losses. The Lakers should be more concerned about their horrendous shooting performance. They shot 25% from the field and 11.8% from three-point land. In addition to a poor shooting night, they also turned the ball over 11 times.
For a team that hasn’t been very active in free agency or trades, the Lakers may have to utilize players outside of Knecht and Bronny at certain points this upcoming season. They will be looking to see more progression from Knect who has started the summer struggling from the field. For James, he just needs to get healthy so he can hit the ground running.
There wasn’t much good from the Lakers performance today, so second-year player Colin Castleton was the biggest bright spot with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The Lakers have one more game here on Wednesday to right the ship before the Las Vegas Summer League kicks off.
About the Author
Cory is an Oregon Duck alumni from the San Francisco Bay Area. He has been playing, watching, and following basketball + baseball his whole life. Follow Cory on X @cory_pappas1 for more breaking stories and game previews.
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