The Rundown

Moody has been a stabilizer, LA playing some D, RJ is the first to 7,000, and more...

Well, hello and welcome back. I’m sorry that it’s been so long since I’ve done one of these. It’s been a challenge trying to balance reentering the workforce in a physical capacity while also attempting to produce two podcasts and maintain just a focus on basketball with all that’s going on in the world at large.

That being said, I’m going to continue striving to produce a few pieces a week again. Please just bear with me, as it’s a difficult juggling act I’m trying to pull off right now. I had hoped to turn this newsletter into something more sustainable, and while I’m very appreciative of the support of all those out there, I unfortunately have been unable to convert enough people here to paid subscriptions to make this a full-time focus, and I still haven’t found a platform interested enough in what I offer.

These are not meant as complaints, just merely an explanation for my absence in this space.

For those who take the time, again, I thank you.

But enough of that—let’s talk some basketball.

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QUICK HITS

I don’t know if many of you out there noticed, but the Los Angeles Lakers have gone through quite the makeover lately. While the addition of Luka Dončić is the change that will ultimately have the biggest impact on the direction of the franchise long-term, it’s the reimagining of the Lakers defensively that has significantly altered the team’s course this season.

Since January 15th—a stretch that now forfeits small sample size or scheduling luck—the Lakers, who are a league-best 14-4 over that run, lead the NBA in Defensive Rating at 107.8. Not the historically great Thunder, nor the steadily stalwart Clippers—no, it’s the Los Angeles Lakers, who have accomplished this feat mostly without one of the NBA’s best defensive players in the now-jettisoned Anthony Davis, who only appeared for the Lakers in seven of those eighteen games.

Best Defensive Rating Since Jan. 15

1. LAL – 107.8

2. POR – 109.0

3. BOS – 109.1

4. LAC – 109.3

5. OKC – 109.3

6. BKN – 109.9

7. TOR – 111.2

8. DET – 111.6

9. ORL – 112.1

10. CLE – 112.3

So how the hell has this Lakers team, which features plenty of fun athletes but few defensive studs—save Dorain Finney-Smith and the recent return of Jarred Vanderbilt—managed to become one of the league’s best defenses for more than a month now?

The biggest difference has come in points in the paint—which is particularly surprising when you consider the rim protection profile of Anthony Davis—but the Lakers went from 28th in the NBA in opponents’ points in the paint per game at 52.8 over their first 37 games to a league-best 42.9 points since January 15th. This is despite the fact that their blocks per game have actually diminished ever so slightly, from 4.8 to 4.7 per contest.

A big part of this change has been in the team’s rebounding efforts, with their defensive rebound percentage having jumped from 24th to ninth since mid-January, helping them move from 26th in the NBA to 13th in terms of opponents' second-chance points in those 18 games.

Of course, the other major change is far less quantifiable, as you can just see a Lakers team that is playing with more energy and effort. JJ Redick said as much himself following the Lakers’ win against the Blazers last week:

"I had this revelation like six weeks ago, two months ago. The math stuff, it’s important. It really is. You try to generate high-value shots. You strategize around throw-aheads and what those create. All that stuff, it’s super important.

"Game plan defensively, it’s all important. Guys have to communicate, all that stuff.

"There’s only actually one cheat code in the NBA, and that’s playing hard. If you play hard every night, you have a chance to win. If you don’t play hard every night, you’re probably going to lose… You give yourself a chance to win every night if you play hard."

That effort has been evident for a Lakers team that went from a major defensive concern to a major defensive problem. Don’t believe that Los Angeles is playing inspired defense? Go ask Nikola Jokić, whose Denver Nuggets got smoked by Los Angeles Saturday night, 123-100, in a game that didn’t feel as close as even that 23-point deficit. Jokić was stymied by a Los Angeles group that seems to have figured out how to weaponize all its athletic length. By swarming and sending double and triple teams, Jokić looked uncharacteristically flustered and rushed, on his way to six turnovers in the game.

Of course, the question becomes whether Los Angeles can maintain this defensive intensity with both Luka and LeBron sharing the floor, as both are notoriously known for being hidden on the other team’s worst scorer. But what we’re seeing strategically from Redick, in sending a flock of lengthy bigs to swallow up any actions inside the three-point line, is a smart utilization of both of those players’ best assets: their impressive size and super-computing brains.

The real stress test for this new Lakers defense is going to come in the playoffs, when the game slows down and interior play becomes more important, as the battle for extra possessions can be the difference-maker in a series. Right now, Los Angeles is relying heavily on the likes of Jaxson Hayes and Alex Len—players who you’re fine with being innings eaters during the season but feel like potential problems when the games get important. Whether this is sustainable feels unlikely, but for a group that should have little problem producing offense, if this new Lakers defense can prove to be legitimate for the long run, it’s not just the addition of Luka that should have the LA faithful in their typically overly-optimistic lather.

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For a team that has been as competitively temperamental as the Golden State Warriors, it’s a bit of a surprise that a guy named Moody would be a stabilizing force for success. But after waxing the MASH-unit Mavericks yesterday, the Dubs are now an impressive 9-0 when their fourth-year swingman is featured in the starting lineup.

Yes, the Jimmy Butler addition is the most transformative for the Warriors’ fortunes, but Moody, who has been steadily improving year over year while patiently waiting his turn and looks to have finally earned himself significant playing time in a deep Warriors rotation, apparently is the Warriors’ keystone for winning this season.

Since January 15th—there’s that date again—Moody’s 12.9 points per game are fifth on the team, and he has scored in double figures in 15 of the 17 games that he’s played in over that time. Moody’s scoring has been important for the Warriors because his 2.2 makes from distance are second on the team (now that Andrew Wiggins is gone) over this stretch, while shooting a healthy 38.4% from distance for the season.

Moody’s shooting has proven extra helpful since the addition of Butler, as he helps compensate for the lack of a perimeter threat that both Butler and Draymond Green present when on the floor together. This is a big reason why Moody has started four of the six games that Butler has played since joining the Warriors.

Whether Moody remains in the starting lineup once Jonathan Kuminga returns remains to be seen, but it would appear that the inconsistent playing time that has been a constant theme in Moody’s career may finally have become, well, less moody.

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It's been a while, but I suppose it’s time for some RJ Barrett content.

For those who have been following LBB from the beginning, Dyson Daniels may be the only player in the NBA with as many appearances as Barrett—who, to the best of my addled memory, has featured in five newsletters now. This is because, for more than two years, I have struggled with my opinion of Barrett. But after becoming the first person from the 2019 NBA Draft class to score his 7,000th career point, here we are… again.

Barrett, who accomplished the feat in Friday’s loss to the Miami Heat, became the second-youngest Canadian to reach the mark, trailing only the player who was guarding him in the game, Andrew Wiggins.