Advertisement

Luke’s skywalkers: Lakers stun Warriors in a dazzling display as Walton one-ups Kerr

The Lakers improved to 3-3 in Luke Walton’s first season as coach after a 117-97 victory over the Golden State Warriors at Staples Center.

Share

Lakers Coach Luke Walton put his hands on his hips and calmly gazed onto the court where the unthinkable was happening.

The Lakers didn’t just beat the Golden State Warriors on Friday night at Staples Center. They throttled the defending Western Conference champions, 117-97.

They beat them by doing what the Warriors historically have done best. They shut down a potentially lethal three-point game, they moved the ball more gracefully, and when the purple and gold streamers fell from the rafters, they put their arms around each other, grinning.

Advertisement

In the postgame locker room, they shouted “I love basketball,” a mantra introduced by their most veteran player, Metta World Peace. They laughed, they felt the joy that comes with winning — that feeling with which Walton wants them to become familiar.

They didn’t talk about the thing nagging at Walton’s mind — the overconfidence this kind of win can breed.

“Not yet,” Lakers guard Lou Williams said, laughing. “No buzz kills tonight.”

But the second the game ended, Walton’s mind reset immediately. This game was progress, but he wants more.

“We’re looking at the big picture,” he said. “The big picture isn’t beating Golden State and losing Sunday night at home. The big picture is we make it really hard for teams to come into Staples Center and win. The big picture is we did what we’re supposed to do. We won at home.”

Forward Julius Randle finished with 20 points, 14 rebounds and a block against Warriors forward Draymond Green, the player whose film Walton shows Randle for aspirational purposes.

Advertisement

“He’s a monster,” Walton said of Randle.

Lou Williams finished with 20 points, many of them carrying the Lakers late in the game as the Warriors made pushes to cut their lead into single-digits. D’Angelo Russell added 17. The Lakers finished with 26 assists and 51 rebounds.

“That means we’re sharing the ball, we’re playing like a team and we’re fighting,” Walton said.

The game was supposed to be a thrashing, but one administered by the visitors. It was a young Lakers team without a single All-Star, with a first-year head coach who learned the trade in his two seasons as a Warriors assistant under his mentor, Steve Kerr. Sure, the Warriors were playing the second of back-to-back games, but they were supposed to so far outclass the Lakers that it wouldn’t matter. This was a team that won an NBA-record 73 games last season — including a 39-4 record with Walton running the team in place of an ailing Kerr — and then signed a former league MVP, Kevin Durant, to add to its arsenal.

Walton’s Lakers will be judged this season by more than wins and losses, but the wins matter to them. At every stop on a cross-country, four-game trip, they fought for them. And though they went 1-3, the win came against the only undefeated team they faced, the Atlanta Hawks.

On a day’s rest, they returned to Staples, greeted by a tepidly optimistic crowd that hadn’t seen a home loss from them yet this season.

The Lakers treated them to a stunning win in large measure because of a defense Walton has said is improving despite its unimposing statistics. The Lakers led, 24-15, after the first quarter — the fewest points the Warriors have scored in a quarter all season, and the fewest allowed by the Lakers.

Advertisement

They were especially effective against reigning league MVP Stephen Curry, who went 0 for 10 from three-point range, ending his personal streak of 157 consecutive games with at least one three-pointer. As a team, Golden State made only five of 32 three-point shots.

“I’m sure they’ll have their nights where they shoot the crap out of the basketball,” Williams said. “Tonight was just one of the particular nights when we played better.”

Did the Lakers surprise even themselves? “Absolutely not,” Randle said.

They knew they could do this, and now they have proof.

Advertisement