The biggest reason the Los Angeles Lakers are 0-2 is their lack of 3-point shooting.
In two contests against the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers, they have gone 19-of-85 from beyond the arc, which is a piss-poor 20%.
If L.A.’s outside shooting remains as cold as a winter night in New York City, it will have trouble finishing at or above .500 by the end of the season. One thing many believe players need to do to rectify the 3-point shooting woes is be more selective when letting shots fly from distance.
Anthony Davis was asked after the loss to the Clippers if the Lakers should keep shooting the ball from downtown (@ 1:33).
“Yeah, I mean we’re getting great looks,” Davis said. “All our guys. Russ had great looks, Pat had great looks, Lonnie, myself, LeBron, Austin. We’re getting great looks. Just continue to have confidence in yourself and don’t let missed shots take away your confidence. Keep shooting it and be confident in your shot and they’re gonna fall.”
The Lakers took a number of impulsive, contested 3s on Thursday, but as Davis noted, they also had a number of decent looks from that distance. They will not shoot 20% the whole season, but they need to hit at a respectable rate from 3-point range.
Interestingly, Davis, who has been criticized for the huge drop in his 3-point accuracy over the past two seasons, went 2-of-4 from the land of plenty on Thursday. Overall, he finished with 25 points despite taking a nasty spill and suffering discomfort for the rest of the contest as a result.
