5 Surprising Statistics That Are Defining the Los Angeles Lakers' Season
The Los Angeles Lakers are struggling through a rough season.
After a terrible start, L.A. has corrected course somewhat and been respectable over their past 15 games.
Taking a look at the numbers reveals the underlying problems driving the team's up-and-down play.
The offense is hurting from a lack of ball movement, stemming from Kobe Bryant's prolific shot-hoisting. The defense suffers from the same problems they had last season, to go along with sub-par rebounding.
And maybe most telling of all is the lineup data, illuminating which units are working for the Lakers and which—perhaps more importantly—are not.
Here are five statistics that are defining the Lakers' season.
1. Assist Percentage
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The Lakers offense has been far too stagnant this season.
Without the requisite ball movement, L.A. ranks next-to-last in the league in the percentage of baskets coming off an assist, per NBA.com.
More often than not, the team stands around watching Kobe Bryant try to go one-on-one. Sometimes it works out spectacularly, but more often than not, it results in a bricked mid-range jumper that takes the entire team out of rhythm offensively.
What makes it more frustrating is that the Lakers play really well when the ball is fizzing around from player to player—especially when Bryant puts an emphasis on getting his teammates good looks.
In its wins, L.A.'s assist rate jumps to 59.1 percent, compared to a paltry 50.3 percent in the team's losses. And over its past six triumphs—which include victories over title contenders such as the San Antonio Spurs, Toronto Raptors and Houston Rockets—Bryant is dishing out more than eight assists per contest.
The team's inconsistency in creating good ball movement reflects the inconsistency in its overall play.
2. Kobe Bryant's Shooting
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Bryant's struggles with maintaining efficiency have been a headline throughout the season, but his myriad bricks are starting to reach historic levels.
According to Basketball-Reference.com, over the last 50 years, only one other player has shot less than 39 percent from the floor while hoisting more than 20 field-goal attempts a night. That was Allen Iverson in 2004—a year in which he missed nearly half the season.
Kobe is shooting even worse than Iverson did that year.
While it's admirable that he can still get off as many shots as he does without much help around him, Bryant needs to keep trusting his teammates.
Guys like Jeremy Lin and Nick Young can create offense as well, while Carlos Boozer, Ed Davis and Wayne Ellington are competent finishers from their respective sweet spots—be it at the rim, from the elbows or beyond the arc.
As discussed before, L.A. is at its most effective when Bryant gets his teammates involved. It forces the defense to have to focus on every player on the court instead of just loading up on Bryant.
Passing more will relieve some of the defensive pressure facing the Mamba, and he can improve upon his historically ugly shooting numbers.
3. Rebound Percentage
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The Lakers are getting bashed on the boards, ranking 28th in the NBA in total rebound percentage.
Opponents are feasting, getting prime second-chance opportunities while also closing out L.A.'s possessions on the other end.
It comes as no surprise that the Lakers out-rebound their opponents slightly in victories, but that point only further emphasizes the need to be a sound rebounding outfit.
Concern only deepens when you see that L.A.'s current starting lineup is grabbing less than 43 percent of available misses—a figure that would rank last in the league by a mile.
The Lakers are already notorious for getting off to slow starts. Getting torched on the glass makes the task no easier.
On paper, it seems like the Lakers should be able to hold their own on the boards, but both Jordan Hill and Carlos Boozer are rebounding at well below their current rates.
Kobe Bryant and Jeremy Lin are slightly below their career percentages as well, and Nick Young is arguably the worst rebounding wing player in the league.
Los Angeles will have to control the glass better to keep its opponents from gaining a significant advantage in the possession department.
4. Poor Performance from the Starting Lineup
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As noted earlier, the Lakers dig themselves a hole to start each half.
That's because their starting units have been thrashed to open halves.
Their old starting five was outscored by 15 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com. That group hemorrhaged points at an alarming rate.
Byron Scott's new first unit has stemmed some of the bleeding on the defensive side, but without offensive-minded players like Jeremy Lin and Carlos Boozer on the floor, the offense has cratered.
The end result hasn't been that different, as the Lakers' current starters are losing by 12.5 points per 100 possessions.
On the flip side, L.A.'s bench-heavy units are blitzing opponents. The team's five-man all-bench outfit that includes Nick Young, Wayne Ellington and Robert Sacre along with Lin and Boozer is outscoring opponents by a whopping 21 points per 100 possessions, albeit in limited minutes.
Mixed units are performing well also, so the case may be that Scott needs to pull the plug on his starters quicker and insert key reserves to inject new life into the squad.
The Lakers can't afford to spot their opponents a sizable lead just a few minutes into the game.
5. Defensive Issues
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Mike D'Antoni was run out of town mostly because the Lakers were abysmal on defense under his command.
In 2014, the Lakers ranked dead last in both opponents' fast-break points and points in the paint, according to NBA.com.
Byron Scott was supposed to come in and turn that around. He vowed to do so after taking the job.
But those changes haven't taken effect yet.
Los Angeles currently ranks 28th in the NBA in opponents' fast-break points and 26th in enemy points in the paint.
The Lakers don't have the personnel to protect the rim, but their focus and effort are consistently lacking as well. Parts of games feel like lay-up lines as the opposition gets easy look after easy look.
They're struggling to get back on defense as well—usually after a Kobe Bryant brick.
Bryant is getting into the problematic habit of languishing on the offensive end and complaining to the officials or just straight-up pouting—leaving his team outnumbered on defense.
Scott must correct these fundamental issues. Otherwise, the Lakers will continue to give up free points every game.
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