By TAYMOUR MOWAFAK
Staff Writer
The first week of the 2014-15 National Basketball Association (NBA) season was rough for the Los Angeles Lakers. In addition to a tough schedule, playing four straight games in just five nights (more than any other team in the league for this year), the Lakers lost rookie power forward Julius Randle to a broken leg in the opener game on Tuesday. Randle will miss most of the season, dashing some of the Lakers fans’ hopes, as the team had high expectations for him when he was drafted from the University Of Kentucky. The Lakers went on to lose that game at home to the Houston Rocket 90-108.
Point guard Jeremy Lin struggled in his Lakers debut against his former team, the Rockets, which traded him during the summer offseason. The loss to the Rockets was difficult, but the Randle injury was a significant blow because the team was already expected to face complications in reaching top eight seed in the Western conference. Kobe Bryant stated in an interview with USA Today Sports about Randle’s injury that “I just told him to keep his spirits up, We’re here to pick him up and get him through it.”
While Randle underwent leg surgery, the Lakers were defeated in Phoenix 99-119: two games and two huge blowouts for the Lakers. Once again, the Lakers were overwhelmed and Lin struggled to find momentum. Ed Davis has taken Randle’s position, acquiring more playing time. For now, Kobe Bryant maintains his prestigious form every game and scores on average more than 20 points per game.
The Lakers have suffered from many injuries, such as player Randle and veteran Steve Nash going out unexpectedly for the season. The Lakers are requesting an exception for Nash to play, and may also do so for Randle if his recovery runs smoothly.
The Lakers played well against the Clippers, and if the team repeats its playing form throughout the season, the team will manage to stack up some wins. However, the team finished the week with fourth straight losses, falling to the Golden State Warriors 104-127. Although the Lakers lost, Lin had his best game of week, a glimpse of how he might help the team this season.
Pramod Chamala (Sr.) said, “Injuries are never accounted for. A majority of Lakers fans relied on Randle to lead the team this year to a successful season, but now things have to change. The team still has ambition in the rest of the roster to step up their performance, they have the ability to do it. I think that the Lakers will overcome this nightmare and reform.”
The Lakers will face the Phoenix Suns on November 4, seeking to capture its first victory.