LeBron James is not worried about the Los Angeles Lakers defense after the team's 127-100 blowout loss in Game 2 of their Western Conference Semifinals series against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night.
The Lakers, who simply couldn't hold up against a barrage of Warriors three-pointers, did not play up to the standard they have set for themselves since the second half of the season began.
But James is unbothered, saying that the Lakers are “still the best defensive team in the league”, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
“We're still the best defensive team in the league, if not one of them,” James said. “So that doesn't change. That's what we hang our hats on. … That doesn't stop no matter who we're playing against.”
While James did backtrack a bit, adding the “if not one of them” part, it's clear how much confidence he has in the defense to bounce back in Game 3.
The numbers do back up James' sentiment, as the Lakers finished with one of the best defensive ratings in the league since the trade deadline- and currently rank second in that metric among the remaining teams in the playoffs.
Even with that stout defense, the Lakers simply had no answer for 21 Warriors' three pointers and two quarters in which the Dubs dropped 40-plus points.
James and Los Angeles can definitely be prideful of their defense.
But when the Warriors have shooting nights like Thursday night, the best defense might just be a good offense.
And the Lakers, who shot 42.6 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from beyond the arc, simply did not have that in Game 2.
It's fair to expect a bounce-back defensively.
An offensive bounce-back, however, needs to happen for James and the Lakers in Game 3.
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