The Mike D’Antoni era has begun only five games into the season after the tryout of the Princeton offense failed, leading to Mike Brown's dismissal.
Steve Nash is injured and will be out for another week or two, so his return with Coach D’Antoni will be delayed for the near future.
During that time, the top Laker talent is being taxed because the bench is relatively weak. Steve Blake, Nash’s backup, couldn’t play the last two games and was questionable for Sunday night’s matchup versus the Houston Rockets.
So what do the Lakers do to take the wear and tear off Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard and eventually Steve Nash?
Los Angeles need to stagger its lineups to keep its stars fresh and limit the potential holes in the bench that might shift the tide during games.
When I talk about staggering the lineup, I mean to position each player’s breaks at specific times, so that one star is not left to carry the load while the other three are resting on the bench.
As you can see from this play, Dwight Howard is taking a breather and Jordan Hill is filling in for him.
Metta World Peace is isolated here, but he has the ability to pass the ball to Gasol near the top of the key or penetrate and kick the ball out to Bryant.
Howard's absence is not a factor as the Spurs have to key on the always-dangerous Bryant and secondary option Gasol. World Peace takes control as he wins his one-on-one matchup with the San Antonio Spurs’ Boris Diaw.
The more chances World Peace has singularly with the ball, the more confidence he has with his offensive ability. He is already leading t...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
