Le Journal

This week presented enough negatives and positives that there can be confirmation bias on both sides. If you think the Lakers are too bad on defense to be a title contender, you point out how they got blown by the Suns on Monday. If you think LA is an offensive juggernaut, then you can point out how they scored 133 points in their win over the Pelicans. While we want things to be black and white, life exists far more often in the gray. Who will this year’s Lakers ultimately be? We’ll have to play it all out to truly find out. 5 things I liked and didn’t like 1. The defense is bad Even during the Lakers’ seven-game win streak, I’ve found their defense to be bad. Points in the paint were easy for opponents to get and as long as teams were a bit patient and passed the ball, a solid look at the basket was guaranteed. The numbers match my eyes. The Lakers have a defensive rating of 115.3, 18th in the NBA. Opponents score 21.1 points off turnovers against LA, fourth-most in the NBA, and average 49.7 points in the paint, 13th in the league. No one is expecting Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves or LeBron James to be elite defenders, but they have to improve. Luka and Austin have to defend better when teams try to pick on them and LeBron isn’t even getting back sometimes. Their offense has been so good that they’ve just tired teams out and have eventually gone on a run to secure the result. That won’t be sustainable this week, as they are set to play only teams with above .500 records. 2. Chill on the LeBron is washed talk Every season, LeBron starts slowly as he ramps up to his All-NBA level. And every year, during the early part of the season, I have to hear people throwing dirt on his still-warm body. So, of course, this season is no different. He’s averaging just 15.2 points, 4 rebounds and 7.2 assists in his first five games, which would be career lows for the king in points and rebounds. Sure, he turns 41 this month and perhaps the decline is here. But if anyone deserves the benefit of the doubt, it’s the player who has consistently produced across 23 seasons in the NBA. Maybe, wait until the year has changed before you declare him the “Washed King”. 3. Swing swing to Rui Hachimura Even Lakers fans who aren’t as high on Hachimura would agree, I’m sure, that he is a great offensive player. This makes the fact that he took only one shot in the team’s loss to the Suns all the more vexing. The Lakers’ offense wasn’t rolling but for whatever reason, the ball didn’t find him. The blame has to go to Luka Dončić on this one. He is the main on-ball player and he didn’t find a way to get him involved. Luckily, Luka took the blame for the result and while Hachimura did point out the Lakers didn’t play well together, he was also clear that there’s no need to panic. I don’t care about excuses or rationale. The only reason for Hachimura to play that much and not shoot is that Luka is red-hot and going for the Wilt Chamberlain 100-point record. Other than that, please pass the ball to your best 3-point shooter who’s waiting for it on the perimeter. 4. Sometimes the villain wins Dillon Brooks was back to his old tricks against the Lakers on Monday. He was the ultimate troll, celebrating every basket like it was a game-winner. He was pointing to fans all night and yapping at anyone who would listen. After one of his dunks, he did an exaggerated shoulder pump celebration, a clear homage/mocking of LeBron. He finished with a team-high 31 points, leading the Suns to the victory. After Phoenix’s win, he was as cocky as ever in his postgame press conference. Dillon Brooks, who loves to play in Staples Center/Crypto.com Arena, is now 3-12 against the Lakers in LA https://t.co/HvE39UL8ZF— Jacob Rude (@JacobRude) December 2, 2025 If you are a neutral fan or a Lakers hater, this was a great moment, but from the Lakers’ perspective, it added salt to the wound that was an embarrassing home loss. So credit to Brooks, he won the battle. However, the overall score…

Of course I take a night off from basketball while the Phoenix Suns are in between games, and I think I am going to spend my Wednesday night playing with the dog, taking out the trash, and throwing a movie on. My choice? Two for the Money. Never seen it before. Probably never watching it again. You know what I should have been watching? The Valley Suns. Why? because Khaman Maluach and Rasheer Fleming were both playing. I do not know how it happened, but I missed it. And of course, I missed great games. Now I have to go hunt them down and watch every minute. I have been walking you through quarter-by-quarter looks at Khaman Maluach with the G League affiliate as the rookie stacks reps and grows his game. Tonight, both he and Rasheer Fleming got that runway. And from everything I have seen so far, neither one of them disappointed. Maluach played 35 minutes and poured in 27 points on 10-of-14 from the field. Sure, he missed his only shot from deep, but he ripped down 15 rebounds, six of them on the offensive end. He swatted four shots. He chipped in one assist. And he was not alone out there. A TANDEM impact sequence from Khaman Maluach and Rasheer Fleming 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/Jfjk83gHOI— PHNX Suns (@PHNX_Suns) December 4, 2025 Rasheer Fleming logged 43 minutes and went 11-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. He matched Maluach with 27 points. He pulled down 13 rebounds, six on the offensive glass. He added three steals and two assists. The real separator? Each of them had only one turnover. And Sheer? Clinched the game in OT. FLEMING FOR THE WIN pic.twitter.com/SQDvE8n5Nk— Cage (@ridiculouscage) December 4, 2025 Development is never a straight line. It moves in waves. And on a night when the Valley Suns picked up their first win in 8 tries this season, this felt like a step forward. These rookies are getting real minutes. They are getting comfortable. This is the developmental plan breathing in real time. This is what it is supposed to look like.