Lakers at Knicks: Julius Randle goes off for NY in dominant win

The Los Angeles Lakers came back to Earth on Monday night after their stunning upset over the Brooklyn Nets over the weekend. It was a former Laker himself who delivered the dose of reality as Julius Randle scored 34 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists in 39 minutes for New York in a 111-96 win over L.A.

The Lakers jumped out to a strong start but two players who were key to their success on Saturday night, Andre Drummond and Ben McLemore, both were non-factors for most of the night. While McLemore’s off-night can be credited to the ol’ missed shots, Drummond’s lack of impact on the offensive end was due to New York’s decision to double-team him frequently throughout the night.

Rather than let Drummond use his size in post-up situations, the Knicks forced it out of his hands and let the rest of the team try to make scoring plays. It worked out for New York as the Lakers were held to just 96 points.

So what happens with Marc Gasol?

Marc Gasol played only five minutes for the Lakers in Monday night's loss. While I've highlighted the one thing he doesn't do, bring a vertical lob threat, he does do quite a bit of other things the Lakers could use. He's a smart defender, passer, and a quality 3-point shooter for a player of his size. Gasol may have a bigger role depending on playoff matchups and perhaps, in the long run, shaving his regular-season minutes might be the best thing for everyone. But one has to wonder how much of an indicator it is that he's getting so few minutes after adding Drummond. Anthony Davis isn't even back yet and the Gasol minutes seem to be drying up. Truthfully, it's a good problem to have if you are Frank Vogel. Having too many good players is always preferred. But how Vogel untangles the web that is the Laker center position, when the playoffs begin, will be one of the most important subplots of their title defense.

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