So the Lakers stand at 14-6. Considering their start, the record is disappointing. Even more so when you consider they are 14-6 against the second weakest schedule in the NBA by opponents' winning percentage.
Let's take a look at what the statistics tell us. But first, I projected the Lakers to finish the season at 54-28.
Team Stats
Offensive Rating (points per 100 possessions): 115.2 (1st in the NBA) [108.8 in 2009]
Defensive Rating (points allowed per 100 possessions): 105.8 (12th) [103.7 in 2009]
Rating Differential: 9.4 [5.1 in 2009]
Points Scored per Game: 108.5 (2nd) [101.7 in 2009]
Points Allowed per Game: 99.6 (16th) [97.0 in 2009]
Pace (possessions per game): 94.1 (9th) [92.8 in 2009]
Player Stats
(in order of minutes played)
Pau Gasol
Offensive Rating: 127 (120 in 2009)
Defensive Rating: 103 (102)
PER: 24.7 (22.9)
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| Photo source: bridgetds |
Offensive Rating: 122 (109)
Defensive Rating: 104 (100)
PER: 19.9 (15.9)
Kobe Bryant
Offensive Rating: 112 (109)
Defensive Rating: 107 (104)
PER: 24.7 (21.9)
Ron Artest
Offensive Rating: 107 (106)
Defensive Rating: 107 (105)
PER: 11.5 (12.1)
Derek Fisher
Offensive Rating: 112 (105)
Defensive Rating: 108 (106)
PER: 10.5 (9.3)
Matt Barnes
Offensive Rating: 121 (111)
Defensive Rating: 105 (103)
PER: 17.7 (13.6)
Shannon Brown
Offensive Rating: 122 (105)
Defensive Rating: 105 (105)
PER: 20.4 (12.4)
Steve Blake
Offensive Rating: 111 (108)
Defensive Rating: 110 (111)
PER: 10.3 (11.6)
As a team the Lakers have a spectacular Offensive Rating. They are averaging 115.2 points per 100 possessions, good for first in the NBA and 6.4 points more than they averaged per 100 possessions in 2009-10. And as you would expect, without Andrew Bynum their Defensive Rating has fallen, from 103.7 last season to 105.8 through the first 20 games. But overall their differential has improved from 5.1 to 9.4. That's tremendous.
He may be third in minutes played but the Lakers fortunes clearly rest on Kobe's shoulders. And in reality the fact that he's averaging only 33.1 minutes per game, the lowest since his second year in the NBA, is a very good sign. When it comes to effectiveness, Kobe's PER is the highest it's been in four years. His shooting has fallen slightly from last year but when you look at his stats per 36 minutes his rebounds and assists are both up and he's getting to the charity stripe at a rate that matches his career high.
Gasol has been nothing short of spectacular so far in 2010. He's posting a career high 24.7 PER and career bests in rebounds per game (11.6), free-throw shooting (82.6%) and turnover rate. The only concern for Gasol is that he's averaging the second highest minutes per game of his career (38.7). After all the games he's played through three straight NBA Finals runs that's not a good idea.
After a subpar season, Odom is currently on pace to put up the most productive year of his career. His 19.9 PER is a nice four point jump from 2009-10. His Offensive Rating is the highest it's ever been. At 57.9% overall and 45.5% from behind the arc he's shooting better than ever before.
It appears that Artest is continuing to slide. His PER has dropped for the third consecutive year and is quite a bit below the NBA average of 15.0. Maybe more concerning, he also has the second worst Defensive Rating of his career. His shooting percentage, rebound rate and assist percentage are all the lowest they've ever been.
To make up for Artest's poor productivity, the Lakers are getting stellar contributions from their wings off the bench. Both Barnes and Brown are putting up the best PER and Offensive Rating of their careers. Barnes is shooting better than he ever has from behind the arc (39.6%) and from the free throw line (80.5%) while also grabbing a higher percentage of the rebounds available to him than he ever has (13.3%). Brown has also been outstanding from three point range (43.1%) while raising the level of every other piece of his game.
When looking at pure production, point guard has been another story. Fisher has a PER of 10.5 and Blake 10.3. But both are doing what the L.A. offense asks of them - hitting threes. Fisher is shooting nearly two a game and making 47.4% while Blake is shooting nearly three and a half a game and putting 47.7% through the hoop.
From a numbers standpoint the Lakers have been superb, both as a team and individually. And when you take a closer look at the margins in the games they've lost you see they are quite small. Should they be worried? I say no. Bynum's return should help them quite a bit defensively. They will also be a better team overall with him in the mix. Considering what the numbers say about them now, it should be the rest of the NBA that's worried.
What are your thoughts on what you've seen so far from the Lakers? Let me know by posting a comment below.
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