Getting defensive: Lakers work on rebounding, transition play

Hey everyone, it’s Dan Woike of the L.A. Times. Welcome to the Lakers newsletter, a weekly check on the state of the team — a job that’s getting easier now that the games are starting to actually count.

This week, I wanted to look at one of the Lakers’ biggest issues to try to see how fixable it is (and ultimately, how crippling of an issue it can be).

On to the newsletter:

The board game

The skin on Anthony Davis’ legs had begun to turn pink late Monday night, the Lakers’ big man removing his feet from the ice bucket in front of his locker while Christian Wood spoke to the media to his right.

It was a big game for Wood, his third positive performance in a row, and Davis nodded approvingly. Wood offered Davis some help — and it was help Davis and the Lakers need.

Monday, Wood grabbed nine rebounds — second on the Lakers to Davis’ 19 boards.

Through four games, the glass, along with transition defense, have been the biggest pregame and postgame talking points.

“It’s just something you just have to continue to work at. There’s no magic pill that’s gonna make it go away,” coach Darvin Ham said after the Lakers beat Orlando. “You are gonna have nights where you dominate the defensive glass. You’re gonna have nights where you’re there, you’re in position, but the ball is slippery, it bounces off your hands, weird bounces off the rim, long rebounds that you don’t seem to be able to track down.

“It’s a lot of different variables. But as long as we make our team aware of it — like, the two things I said, the beginning of our defense and the end of our defense. The transition defense and the defensive rebounding is something that we want to prioritize. Everything in the middle, we can figure out.”

The transition piece can be helped with more effort and urgency, the Lakers simply sprinting back harder. Some of it is sort of what it is, with Davis ending a lot of offensive possessions deep under the basket, meaning the Lakers best defender is probably going to be the final one back.

The rebounding is potentially more problematic, the Lakers starting a relatively small backcourt in Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell and a 21-year veteran in LeBron James who is conserving energy throughout games. Jarred Vanderbilt should help ease some of the problems — rebounding has never been Taurean Prince’s strength.

More minutes for Wood could be an answer, the talented journeyman playing focused basketball in the first week of the season, even contributing in one-on-one defensive assignments.

“Just go get it, that’s it,” Wood said of rebounding. “That’s my mentality.”

While the Lakers’ other early-season problems, like shooting, should even out with time, the team isn’t going to get bigger or stronger. They’re going to have to find physicality from somewhere. And asking Davis to handle all of it could be a recipe for disaster.

Court date

The NBA and the Lakers unveiled their new court design for the NBA’s in-season tournament, which begins a week from Friday for the Lakers in Phoenix.

I generally dislike the court designs but applaud the attempts at making tournament games feel different from the rest of the regular season.

That, to me, still feels like the big challenge with the tournament — will it feel different enough?

Between the courts and the intro commercial, which is wonderful, the NBA is at least trying to make it feel different.

Song of the week

“Infinite Surprise” by Wilco

I love a moody Wilco album opener as much as anyone, and the latest from one of my favorite bands delivers.

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Lakers’ LeBron James returning to city where he made a dazzling debut

New streaming service will offer Lakers games to cable cord-cutters

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Plaschke: Lakers make necessary but dangerous decision to end LeBron James’ minutes restriction

Lakers’ Christian Wood, best known for his offense, puts key pressure on Kevin Durant

Lakers’ late rally falls short in season-opening loss to the Nuggets

Five takeaways from the Lakers’ season-opening loss to the Nuggets