February 15th, 2017
Well that went badly. The Lakers skidded into the All-Star break, losing to the Suns 137-101 on Wednesday night in Phoenix. Eric Bledsoe led the way for the Suns with his third career triple double, and Devin Booker added 23 points of his own.
Bledsoe finished with 25 points, 13 assists, and 10 rebounds, as the Suns set season highs in points and in field goal percentage, shooting 55% from the floor. Bledsoe hit a half court shot at the buzzer at the end of the 1st half. It was also the Suns 11th straight victory at home against LA.
The Lakers got 21 points each from D’Angelo Russell and Lou Williams, but nothing else went right for them. They lacked energy from start to finish, they shot 37% from the field, and they were crushed on the glass by a margin of 59-36.
LA heads into the All-Star break losing 3 of it’s last 4. The only good news is that they moved closer to the Suns in the standings, with the Lakers only a half game in front of the Suns in the Western Conference. Phoenix has the second worst record in the NBA, and the Lakers 1st round pick in 2017 is top 3 protected, so finishing in the bottom 3 wouldn’t hurt.
The Lakers next game isn’t until February 24th, one day after the NBA’s trade deadline. The leads to the question of whether or not Lou Williams and/or Nick Young have played their last game with LA. Both veteran guards are generating interest around the league, and one General Manager even confirmed to Basketball Insiders’ Alex Kennedy that the Lakers have been discussing Williams in trade talks.
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak also confirmed that there has been a lot more activity lately. “We are active, yes. We’re active every year. … Quite frankly compared to the last three or four years, we have a lot of talent on this roster that I think a lot of people have interest in — varying levels of interest. I would think there’s more meaningful discussions this year than there have been the last two or three years,” Kupchak said.
Whether that activity leads to any trades remains to be seen. However, the Lakers would benefit a great deal from moving veteran players from their roster, especially if it means adding future 1st round picks, and opening up more playing time for their young players to develop.