Kyle Kuzma Eviscerates Pistons for 41 Points in Lakers' Blowout Win

Kyle Kuzma scored 41 points on 16-of-24 shooting in just 29 minutes as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Detroit Pistons 113-100 on Wednesday at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

The 23-19 Lakers, who were without LeBron James, won their second straight game. The four-time MVP suffered a groin injury on Christmas Day against the Golden State Warriors.

Blake Griffin had 16 points for the 17-22 Pistons, who are just 4-15 in their last 19 games.

Kyle Kuzma's Scoring Outburst Masks Lakers' Significant Problems

Kuzma could have gone for 50-plus points on Wednesday if not for the Lakers making the result a moot point before the fourth quarter. The second-year pro sat the last 13 minutes, and his teammates finished off an easy 13-point win.

While the Lakers enjoyed a resounding victory, they're still just 3-5 without James in the lineup. The bigger issue is Los Angeles' schedule hasn't been difficult during that stretch, as the Lakers have only played two teams with current winning records. Los Angeles lost both of those games (at home) by a combined 18 points, and it also dropped a 119-112 contest against the 10-win New York Knicks.

Kuzma didn't play in that game, but the Lakers are too inconsistent right now to trust outside James.

Kuzma was coming off a 4-of-20 performance on Monday. Brandon Ingram had 29 points on 12-of-21 shooting on Monday, but he made just 36.2 percent of his field goals in his previous three games leading into that night. Lonzo Ball's first three January games resulted in just seven made field goals and 20 points. That offensive inconsistency has been a theme all year, to the point where the Lakers are just No. 21 in offensive efficiency, per ESPN.com.

Kuzma is 23, and Ingram and Ball are 21, so inconsistency is expected. Playing in the second-biggest media market in the country for a storied franchise looking to return to its glory days isn't easy either.

However, the Lakers don't have the look of a team ready to compete for the playoffs, especially considering that the postseason isn't even a guarantee with every Western Conference team sans the Phoenix Suns having at least a puncher's chance in a packed league. Their Wednesday win was encouraging, but it came against a Pistons team that looks destined for the lottery.

If the L.A. offense doesn't get on track quickly, then the Lakers could be in big trouble, especially with a brutal stretch of games from Jan. 17-Feb. 10 that includes nine games versus teams currently in the top eight of their respective conferences.

Pistons Should Look to Trade Andre Drummond

Pistons center Andre Drummond averaged 17.1 points and 14.9 rebounds entering Wednesday. He's a two-time All-Star and isn't turning 26 years old until August.

However, the Pistons aren't going anywhere with the talented center manning the post. That's not all his fault by any means, as Detroit is second-to-last in field-goal percentage and three-point percentage. Drummond isn't a three-point shooter by trade, but he at least makes 50.7 percent of his field goals.

The fact that Drummond can't stretch the floor is a problem in today's NBA, however, as teams are shooting more three-pointers than ever.

Sure, some centers on successful teams (e.g. Houston Rockets center Clint Capela) aren't shooting from beyond the arc, but his team lives and dies (mostly lives) by the three.

Detroit mostly dies by it. Drummond is also paint-bound (he had accrued the second-most paint touches in the league entering Wednesday, per NBA.com), and that makes for a bad combination.

Also, the Pistons are now five games below .500 and without any realistic chance of competing for an Eastern Conference title. Detroit is just No. 25 in offensive efficiency, and its No. 15 defensive ranking does not make up for it.

In addition, Drummond can opt out of his deal after the 2019-20 season, and Detroit runs the risk of losing him for nothing should he decide to head elsewhere.

Given those reasons, Detroit should make significant strides to rebuild its roster, with a Drummond deal as the centerpiece.

That doesn't mean the Pistons should press the panic button and trade Drummond to any team willing to make a deal. If Detroit wants to wait a little longer, it realistically can until February 2020, when the last trade deadline before Drummond's player option takes place.

But the Pistons need to find some guard help, especially given their shooting woes.

The counterpoint is that trading Drummond could cause one problem in an attempt to fix another. Of note, who is going to gobble up 15-plus rebounds per night and show enough scoring potential to post 20-20 games?

That's not an easy answer, but the Pistons desperately need to improve their outside shooting, which would arguably be a bigger need than finding a replacement down low.

In a league where a team is better off tanking rather than hanging by a thread for a playoff chance, the Pistons' best bet is rebooting the roster.

Drummond is an absolute monster in the paint at his best, and he isn't the primary reason the Pistons are in their current position. However, he'd be a better fit on another team with improved outside shooting, and the Pistons are better off starting anew.

What's Next?

The Lakers hit the road to face the Utah Jazz on Friday at 10 p.m. ET. The Pistons play the second matchup of a four-game Western Conference road trip on Thursday at 10 p.m. against the Sacramento Kings.