Lakers: Wishing Upon a Point Star
The Los Angeles Lakers opened their Summer League schedule off with a thrilling 66-64 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks - paramount to the team's win was the clutch shot of Javaris Crittenton, the Los Angeles Lakers' 19th overall pick.
Basketball News, bringing you the best coverage of the Vegas Summer League, caught up with Javaris Crittenton right after the game to get his thoughts on his outstanding debut. Javaris Crittenton finished the game with 18 points on 8-13 shooting, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals in just over 25 minutes of play. Though he didn't start the game, Javaris Crittenton made his presence felt by scoring the final points of the game, knocking down a 20-footer with three seconds remaining in the game to give the Los Angeles Lakers the lead and sealing the victory.
Unlike Marco Belinelli's stellar introdcutory performance, Javaris Crittenton didn't wow spectators with gaudy statistics (although he did do so with a few rather thunderous dunks over his opponents. Although his statline was very good, it's important to remember that these games are Summer League games against sub-par, borderline-NBA talent (if not worse). It might go without saying but it should be reminded that scoring, rebounding, and blocking shots are amongst the things that are much easier to do at this level than in the league where the stronger, quicker players reside. Players can play very well against this competition, but it doesn't necessarily mean anything as far as projections go.
However, there are certain traits that talent evaluators look for in these games to see whether a player has the skills that translate well to the NBA. When observing the game through that lens, how did Javaris Crittenton perform?
As a team, the Los Angeles Lakers struggled offensively to start the game, missing their first five shots and not scoring a point until several minutes into the game. The Bucks hadn't opened up a tremendous lead because they, too, made offense look like rocket science, but they did have a lead that the Los Angeles Lakers didn't seem like they were going to cut because their defense was almost as bad as their offense. Jordan Farmar struggled early to stay in front of Lynn Greer, who blew by him on several occasions to start the game but couldn't make much of his opportunities after beating Jordan Farmar.
In comes Javaris Crittenton, who immediately affects the game defensively by forcing a turnover in the Bucks' backcourt on one possession and reading an inbounds pass in the Bucks' frontcourt for an interception on another. He remained aggressive on defense, fighting through screens (although, he was ineffective in doing so, as the screener was like a wall against him), and staying in front of Greer. One one occasion, Javaris Crittenton caught up with a Bucks guard that had a breakaway and leapt above him to block his layup attempt, a display of effort and pride. Javaris Crittenton showed exceptional footwork on defense in keeping his feet shuffling and agility in changing directions with his opponent. The shuffling of his feet is important in maintaining balance against guards and staying in front of them, a sign that bodes well for fans hoping Javaris Crittenton can provide better defense at the point guard position. Again, this was against Lynn Greer, a far cry from Steve Nash or Tony Parker, but Greer is a pretty quick scoring point guard and he did give Jordan Farmar fits earlier in the game.
The Los Angeles Lakers went on a 7-0 run after Javaris Crittenton entered the game in the first quarter and he continued the defensive effort throughout the game.
As happy as Laker fans should be about his defensive performance, Javaris Crittenton was very productive offensively as well, displaying a very fluid shooting form, an early understanding of the triangle offense, and solid vision in being able to set his teammates up in the system. After the aforementioned interception, Javaris Crittenton had a one-on-one with his defender but chose to pull back and displayed some patience in waiting for his teammates. He then passed the ball back to Andre Patterson, trailing the play and receiving at the free throw line before finding Larry Turner under the basket for an easy stuff. Javaris Crittenton didn't get the assist, but his fundamentals and maturity were displayed; as he showed later in the game, he could have easily gone to the rim and tried to jump over the man guarding him. A little later in the quarter, Javaris Crittenton was in the backcourt before lobbing an outstanding pass from just beyond half court to Turner who was alone in the paint for some reason - the vision and confidence required to make such a pass are noteworthy.
From that point forward, Javaris Crittenton began to show some of his "point star" qualities, as a league source indicated during the draft process that Javaris Crittenton has a scoring mentality mixed in with tremendous athletic ability. The source compared Javaris Crittenton to Steve Francis or Stephon Marbury, but insisted that Javaris had his head on straight. Javaris Crittenton began to display his athleticism with various dunks, including one he created off his own dribble penetration after a crossover that left his defender wondering where he'd gone. He combined his quickness with a good handle on the ball to penetrate and get to the basket often, which won't be as easy in the NBA but shows potential in that area. Javaris Crittenton also put back an offensive rebound after jumping from several feet from the basket and letting the ball go before landing. Combining his explosiveness with a sound understanding of the triangle offense, Javaris Crittenton made several quick cuts within the triangle offense that allowed him to get to the basket; he was pounded by defenders and went to the line on both occasions.
As rosy as all this sounds, there are several things Javaris Crittenton must work on as Summer League action continues. First off, he must improve his free-throw shooting, as he went 2-6 in the opener; there really is no excuse for him to be a bad free-throw shooter, as his mid-range game proved to be solid. More importantly, however, Javaris Crittenton must improve on his upper body strength - a guard with his quickness and dribbling ability will get to the rim often in the NBA, but the Big Leagues are a physical game where he'll be knocked around harder than he was on Sunday when he gets in with the trees. On Sunday, Javaris Crittenton was not able to finish shots around the basket when he was fouled, but an improved upper body strength would allow him to absorb contact and become more efficient in the painted area. In the same vein, Javaris Crittenton must work to show some of his toughness and a willingness to get into the paint on defense and grab rebounds if he has to; he finished with four boards, which isn't bad, but he consistently stayed out of the paint for those boards that bounced long. This isn't as important, but an improvement would be welcome. Lastly, it would be nice to see Javaris display some more of his point guard skills - he has them, but he didn't really get an opportunity to show them.
Consistency is key in Summer League - the question now becomes whether Javaris can keep it up.
HAVE THE Los Angeles Lakers FOUND THEIR STARTING POINT GUARD?
No. This was one Summer League game and the Los Angeles Lakers' interest in Derek Fisher, Maurice Williams, and Steve Blake will continue. As the team continues to explore trade options and pieces worthy of the Mid-Level Exception in hopes of bringing in a solid veteran presence, the team will monitor Javaris' progress in Summer League and look at him as a backup combo guard. For minutes at a time, Los Angeles Lakers Summer League Head Coach Kurt Rambis used both Javaris Crittenton and Jordan Farmar in the backcourt together, so Javaris Crittenton's skills may be used in more than one position.
HOW DID THE OTHER Los Angeles Lakers DO?
There were other Los Angeles Lakers on the court on Sunday, after all.
Jordan Farmar
Jordan Farmar had a bad game, but made it better with a good performance in the fourth quarter. Early on in the game, Jordan Farmar struggled to keep in front of Greer, as mentioned above, which could amount to nothing more than rust. However, he has known for a while that the Los Angeles Lakers will be counting on his defense at the one, so seeing this was disappointing. Also early in the game, Jordan Farmar made some atrocious decisions that could be attributed to his teammates not helping him out, but he shouldn't have put himself in those situations - Jordan Farmar was caught twice in the backcourt by double teams and picked up his dribble on both occasions, once leading to an ill-advised pass to get out of it that was stolen by the Bucks. This wasn't Jordan Farmar's only bad pass, as he finished the game with six turnovers and only one assist (on the Javaris Crittenton game-winner). On another occasion, Jordan Farmar received the ball at half court and put his head down and went full speed ahead toward the basket, in an attempt to almost go through a Bucks defender. He was out of control and was called for an offensive foul.
Jordan Farmar did redeem himself later in the game, hitting an open three (his only field goal - he finished 1-8 from the field, missing four of five three-point attempts) and using his knowledge of the triangle offense to make a few good cuts that got him to the basket and used his vertical to hang in the air before drawing a foul. He also made good passes in the second half, but certainly needs to show that he is one of the better players on the court next time he's out there. Jordan Farmar nabbed five rebounds, a positive for any point guard
Larry Turner
His name has been mentioned a few times as Turner was the main low-post bruiser for the Los Angeles Lakers, leading the team with six rebounds and literally living in the paint. He showed that he has a very strong post game, making moves with purpose and fluidity, but he struggled to finish around the basket, ending the game with six points on 2-7 shooting, with most of his shots coming in the paint. Turner is an active defender, but he struggled to deny position to his opponents - in general, his defense must improve. However, the effort is there and he may be a player to keep an eye on over the summer.
Coby Karl
Karl, son of Nuggets Head Coach George Carl, got the start at the two-guard spot for the Los Angeles Lakers. An inspiring young man who had cancerous lymph nodes removed from his neck just three months ago, his second bout with cancer, Karl is hoping his basketball IQ and smooth jump shot earn him an NBA job. As intelligent as he is, Karl looked like he was thinking too much out there on Sunday and wasn't in the flow of the triangle offense. "I’m trying to get to the point where I can just react and not have to think," Karl admitted after the game. "Although it is a difficult offense to run, I study after practice," he added. Karl finished with 10 points, going 4-7 from the field, but must show he can do more on the court - make solid passes, play better defense - to keep the Los Angeles Lakers' interest in him.
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