On January 4th, Beijing time, the Lakers played against the Hawks at home. The game ended with the Lakers successfully defeating the Hawks 119-102. It was not easy for the Lakers to win this game, as there were a large number of turnovers in the game. The Lakers had 18 turnovers in total, but this time the Hawks only scored 14 points from turnovers. Therefore, the Lakers did not lose too many points in this regard. Moreover, in this game, the Hawks' three-point shooting was poor (6 out of 34), so the Hawks had an extremely difficult game. After the Lakers won the game, they rose to fourth place in the Western Conference, while the Hawks dropped to seventh place in the Eastern Conference after losing.
In this game, we can also see that the Lakers have made significant progress. This season, the Lakers' defense has been poor at times, but now they have defensive continuity. So when the Lakers' offense is not going well, they can stabilize the situation on the court through defense. At the same time, the Lakers often suffered in rebounds during this season, but in this game, the Lakers had a significant advantage in rebounds, grabbing 56 rebounds in total, while the Hawks only grabbed 39 rebounds. The Lakers also grabbed 17 offensive rebounds in the game, giving them more offensive opportunities. Although some people felt sorry for the Lakers sending Russell away, it seems that the Lakers made the right choice from now on. After all, Russell's defensive flaws are too obvious, and Smith's defense has been very helpful to the Lakers.
At the same time, Smith's offensive state is gradually improving. In the end, Smith scored 8 points and 5 rebounds in this game with 3 out of 5 shots. As Smith gradually integrates into the Lakers' system, Hachimura needs to be alert. After all, Hachimura has not played well in recent games. His struggles on the offensive end have hurt the Lakers. Fortunately, in this game, Hachimura showed signs of recovery. First of all, he could cut to the basket and score in this game. Secondly, Hachimura finally hit a three-pointer in the game. When Hachimura does what the Lakers need, he has a chance to continue to stay in the starting position. After all, when Smith was first traded to the Lakers, rumors spread that Smith might replace Hachimura as the starter. Although this did not happen, if Hachimura continues to perform poorly, Smith really has the possibility to replace him.
At the same time, Knickert, who struggled earlier, finally found his offensive form in this game, which is quite important for the Lakers. After all, the Lakers' previous victories relied on Knickert's three-point explosion. However, since Knickert moved to the bench, he lost his three-point touch. Now seeing Knickert find his offensive touch again is important for the Lakers. In the end, Knickert scored 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist in this game with 4 out of 7 shots, including 3 out of 4 three-pointers. Of course, for the Lakers, winning is not the key, but James' remarks after the game. After the game, when talking about his performance in this game, James said: "There's still gas in my tank, I guess I'll keep going until the tank runs out."
Although James played back-to-back in this game, he still performed at an extremely high efficiency in the game. He scored 30 points, 3 rebounds, and 8 assists with 13 out of 20 shots. It can be said that James' ability to perform like this is very important, because the Lakers still rely heavily on James, especially when Davis' offensive efficiency is not high enough, James needs to step up. Moreover, from James' words, we can see that James is far from being unable to exert himself, which is the key for the Lakers. After all, only when James maintains his form can the Lakers win more victories. Therefore, seeing James perform outstandingly in the game, the Lakers should be happy.
