LeBron James, wearing a gray plastic boot, a black hooded sweatshirt and a black mask, and Anthony Davis, in a lime green jacket and a bright yellow mask, were hard to miss during the Los Angeles Lakers’ 111- 94 defeat at Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
But Lakers guard Dennis Schroder said that while LA does not have its two stars in uniform, the Lakers will have to completely overhaul their approach.
“I think as we played before with them both on the court, it is completely opposite now, I think,” said Schroder after the Lakers lost by up to 18 and never led against the Suns. “I think we have to move the ball, we have to play faster. On the defensive side, we have to be more unstable. And, yes, I mean, everyone who is coming to the track has to be confident to hit down on shooting or to impact the game on the defensive end. “
When asked who would be called to the lead during James’ indefinite absence due to a high right ankle sprain and while Davis is away for at least another week with calf strain and right leg tendon, Lakers coach Frank Vogel, mentioned Schroder.
“Obviously, Dennis Schroder will be the head of the snake with the ball in his hands, dictating part of the action,” said Vogel after the 27-year-old, acquired in a negotiation with Oklahoma City Thunder during the off-season, made 22 points and three assists. on Sunday. “But we have a lot of veteran guys on this team who can lead, and we encourage our guys to lead on every chair in the room.”
Including James’s seat, which was next to the Phoenix Suns Arena bench.
“It tells me that he cares about this organization,” Schroder said of James joining the team’s flight a few hours after undergoing an MRI and ankle X-rays. “In my career, I have seen people getting hurt and not coming on the trip, and for him, being the best – one of the best who ever played this game – that you see him on the bench being there even though he is hurt, it means a lot to me and everyone else [players on this team] also.”
Schroder may have been taking the reins of the court for quite some time. Vogel admitted that ankle sprains usually take “a little while to heal … they are slow recoveries”.
With the NBA’s compressed schedule because of COVID-19, even if James had a relatively quick rehab process and lost three to four weeks, that would mean 13 to 16 additional games without him for a team that dropped to 0-2 when he don’t play.
LA is trying to find the silver lining in the meantime. Vogel said he was “optimistic” based on how the Lakers competed against Suns, the second team in the Western Conference. Schroder went so far as to say that playing without co-captains is “great for everyone else” because they can “prove to teammates and the organization that they can play”.
And Vogel pointed out that some free time for a 36-year-old playing in his 18th season, which started just 71 days after the end of his 17th season, may not be a bad thing for James.
“We are encouraging him to take a mental break and recharge a little bit mentally, so that when he comes back we are at a point where we can push into the playoff and make some noise, obviously going into the playoffs,” Vogel said of James .
The idea of a physically and mentally renewed James joining the team can be a comfort to LA – after all, he led the Lakers to the championship after a 4 ½ month hiatus last season – but there is still an immediate challenge that they go face in the meantime.
“We want to play as hard as we can, in the right way and [we’re] will still come out with wins, “said the great Lakers man, Montrezl Harrell.” I just have to hold on while these guys recover and come back. “