Lakers Win Sunday with a New Starting Lineup, Carmelo Anthony Shines, Again. Could He Stick in the Closing 5?

The Lakers are now above .500 after a 95-85 win over a seriously hapless Houston Rockets squad, and by flipping their typical script. For once, it was their defense that was most reliable, while the offense was spotty. Granted, it snuck up on Brian that the Lakers' offense has been so effective in the first place, but frankly, given the defense the front office sacrificed this offseason to improve the scoring, it ought to be better. Take away a penchant for awful turnovers, like the Lakers actually did on Sunday, and for the most part, that's been the case. But how much was the improved defense indicative of better execution vs. the fortune of a terrible opponent? It's hard to say. But similar to Carmelo Anthony's four block/two steal night, which isn't likely to be repeated anytime soon, as long as the Lakers can regularly do something in between tonight and their most pathetic, at least some issues can be fixed until the return of potentially helpful folks like Trevor Ariza, Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn. (This is another area where if the Lakers stopped turning the ball over so much, it would help a lot.) Finally, Frank Vogel changed the starting lineup, sliding Anthony Davis to center and putting Avery Bradley into the backcourt alongside Russell Westbrook. The decision was sparked in part by Dwight Howard's unavailability (neck stiffness), so they needed DeAndre Jordan as a backup center option. But it was something Vogel had considered anyway, and the Rockets were a good match for this experiment. Time will tell how often Vogel keeps this look, but either way, it felt like a sign of more minutes to come for Bradley. Hosts: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky SEGMENT 1: How the Lakers beat the Rockets (besides Houston just being terrible). SEGMENT 2: Are the Lakers starting to figure out things defensively? SEGMENT 3: What can be read into Sunday's different starting lineup? Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Shopify Go to Shopify.com/lockedonnba for a FREE fourteen-day trial and get full access to Shopify’s entire suite of features. Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15” and you’ll get 15% off your next order. BetOnline AG There is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus. Rock Auto Amazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices