Lakers vs. Clippers: Why Andrew Bynum Must Become Lakers' Featured Weapon
The Los Angeles Lakers' star guard Kobe Bryant has been relentless in his domination of the opposition as of late, but when the team takes on the Los Angeles Clippers tonight, center Andrew Bynum needs to be the go-to guy.
Bynum missed the first four games this season following an illegal elbow shot he took at small guard J.J. Barea in last season's NBA playoffs. But he is back now and is looking good thus far. The Lakers have to start utilizing him more often and much more consistently.
This season, he is second in scoring for the team, but he's only averaging 16.9 PPG. In three games thus far, the oft-injured big man has scored over 20 points, while he has been kept to just below 15 the rest of the time.
Bynum can be a serious threat in this league, and the Lakers need to find a way to get the ball in his hands while also letting Kobe do his thing from time to time.
While Bryant has been on fire—three straight 40-point games—the team needs to have a plan implemented because he likely won't be able to keep this up on a consistent basis given the current situation surrounding his wrist.
The Lakers' second option is Bynum, but he needs to get the opportunities to close that huge gap between him and the Black Mamba.
There are other potential scorers, but players such as Pau Gasol and Josh McRoberts are not going to make up on the ground that the Lakers will need.
In his first game back, Bynum tore up the Denver Nuggets, scoring 29 points.
This season, the Los Angeles Clippers are allowing 39.2 PPG in the paint. That puts them right in the middle of the pack but worse than teams like the Memphis Grizzlies, who allowed Bynum to put up 15 points in their early January matchup.
While this will be the first regular season game between the two teams, they did play against each other twice for this year's short-lived preseason. In the first game, Bynum only scored 15 points, and the team lost by 19 points. In their second game, he put up 26, but this time they lost by just five while playing without Bryant.
The Clippers know what Kobe can do, and they will be looking to put tight coverage on him all night. With them likely looking to lock him down, the Lakers must get Bynum the ball often. He won't exactly be challenged, as both DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin are average defenders at best, especially when it comes to stopping big men.
Both of the Clippers down low threats are athletic, but they will have their hands full in trying to stop a force like Bynum each time down the floor.
The Lakers need to be smart and make the most out of what they have on the floor. They are riding on a great win streak, and they will need to get the ball into Bynum's hands to keep things rolling tonight.
