Opening night of the 2022-23 season didn't exactly go well for the Los Angeles Lakers. After keeping things relatively close throughout the first half, the game got away in the third quarter, resulting in a 123-109 loss.
To kick off the 20th season of his NBA career, LeBron James finished with 31 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists, but it clearly wasn't enough as the Lakers trailed by as many as 27 points in the loss.
Following the game, James was candid in his assessment of the shortcomings that could prove to be an issue for the team throughout the season.
"To be completely honest, we're not a team that's constructed of great shooting," James said of the Lakers' 10-of-40 showing from beyond the arc. It's worth noting that of those 40 attempts, 37 were considered to be open or wide open, per NBA.com Stats, which adds more staggering context to the 25.0 percent efficiency.
"It's not like we're sitting here with a lot of lasers on our team, but that doesn't deter us from still trying to get great shots," James continued. "When you get those opportunities, you take them, but we're not sitting here with a bunch of 40-plus [percent] career 3-point shooting guys."
LeBron James on Lakers’ poor shooting in loss to Warriors: “We’re getting great looks, but it could also be teams giving us great looks. To be completely honest, we’re not a team constructed of great shooting… It’s not like we’re sitting here with a lot of lasers on our team.” pic.twitter.com/VfqWnKcQ3D
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) October 19, 2022
You don't have to be much of a numbers guy to agree with James' take. Of the players on the Lakers' current roster, Patrick Beverley has the highest career mark from behind the arc at 37.7 percent. After Beverley, it's Kendrick Nunn (36.5 percent), Juan Toscano-Anderson (35.6 percent) and big man Thomas Bryant (35.0 percent), who will miss the first few weeks of the season with a thumb injury.
Considering the low volume associated with the above player's career numbers, it's hard to envision LA remedying its shooting woes as the roster is currently constructed.
Take into consideration that a winning formula for a LeBron-led team — and any team in today's game — includes prolific 3-point shooters to space the floor, and the Lakers' outlook moving forward isn't exactly a good one. But with James' honesty came a sense of optimism that other areas of the game can make up for — and correct — the team's shortcomings.
You continue to defend. You continue to trust the shot. You put in the work. And if you put in the work out on the floor when the cameras are not watching, then you trust it. You trust it … if everybody is putting the work in, you live with those results. That's all you can do.
While James was encouraged by the way the team competed on the first night of the season, the Warriors' offense hummed like a well-oiled machine, putting LA's defensive ability into question as well.
So, with an egregious lack of shooting and major question marks on the defensive end, should we be writing the Lakers off after one game? James looked towards another seemingly ageless wonder to remind anyone willing to listen that the Lakers can still win.
"Let's keep it a buck, it would be like a football team," James added. "If you had a football analogy and you had a bunch of guys that were underneath route runners and wondering why the quarterback is not throwing 20-plus [yard] passes down the field. That's how the team is constructed. That don't mean you can't win. [Tom] Brady did it."
While the Brady analogy may be a bit far-fetched, James and his cast of struggling shooters will look to find an alternative path to success. If that doesn't work, perhaps the team will seek a solution outside the roster sooner rather than later.
