Los Angeles Lakers suddenly revived: Strength comes from squad depth?

It would not be an exaggeration to call D'Angelo Russell's outstanding performance on March 11 perfect. He returned after missing the last 6 games of the Los Angeles Lakers, immediately helping the team win with a score of 122-112 and at the same time being the highest scorer.

Sixteen of D'Lo's 28 points came in the final round (including a 100% success rate) to complete the comeback against the Toronto Raptors with his teammates.

Since the All-Star break, the Los Angeles Lakers have won 6 out of 8 games and are currently 9th in the Western rankings, just 1.5 games away from 5th place of the LA Clippers.

"I was like flying out on the court," D'Angelo Russell shared after having 28 points, 10-17 FG with 9 assists and 5 rebounds. "This is my first game back from injury and I don't think too much, mainly I want to go out and get the feeling of playing again.

But the more on the field, the greater the energy source. Plus my teammates played well, I flew with them and had a good game. When the final whistle blew, I just laughed."

Russell's outburst was most evident in the fourth half, where he and his teammates had a 37-22 inning score against the Toronto Raptors. This effort closed the gap at one point of up to 15 points that the Lakers had to face.

In less than 5 minutes, D'Angelo had 4 successful 3-pointers, including long throws in a quick counterattack as soon as the Lakers had the advantage in numbers. These finishing phases are a double-edged sword, but in the day when Russell was so sublimated, they helped the entire LA team play more explosively.

The return of D'Angelo Russell is expected to affect Dennis Schroder, who has filled the position that D'Lo left when injured. However, Dennis played well today despite being on the bench, ending the game with 23 points and 7 assists.

Plus Austin Reaves' good form, the Los Angeles Lakers have a bench that records five times the reserve of the Toronto Raptors.

It is worth mentioning in this victory of the Los Angeles Lakers that they are still without LeBron James, and Anthony Davis has a surprisingly silent match.

The LA team has 5 players scoring over 16 points, Davis is not among them because he only has 8 points with 4-7 FG (despite playing more than 30 minutes). In fact, AD does not have any health problems or tactical restraints, he is just ready to "step back" in a day when his teammates play too sublime.

With the absence of LeBron James and Davis playing weakly but still winning, this is a very positive image for a team of Los Angeles Lakers that are often complained for lack of depth, with no one playing well but the duo. All-Star mentioned above.

“Our squad now has depth and is more cohesive than ever. Even though it's only one game, it shows how much our team has improved in the last transfer window," said coach Darvin Ham.

There have been concerns about the Los Angeles Lakers struggling with LeBron James' injury. In fact, the purple-yellow shirt team is playing very well and has a series of 3 unbeaten matches. If counting further, the Lakers have lost 2 times in the last 9 matches.

Perhaps after a period of both bad luck and bad luck, things have begun to turn around for LeBron James and his teammates.