Getty Images Tyson Chandler– Los Angeles Lakers vs Minnesota Timberwolves (November 7, 2018)
The Los Angeles Lakers struggled throughout all four quarters of the lowly (now 3-10) Atlanta Hawks. It came to the very last play of regulation for the Lakers to secure the win against the Hawks. And it came in the form of a very timely block by the recently acquired, Tyson Chandler, who blocked a driving Trae Young‘s layup at the rim.
Check out the clip of Chandler’s block and the celebration that ensued afterward by the entire Lakers bench and below.
Tyson Chandler’s Monster Game-Winning Block
With just a little over 15-seconds left in regulation, NBA rookie, Trae Young took control of the last possession. Laker forward, Brandon Ingram, took on the defensive assignment and did well until Young was able to penetrate the paint and create a shot for himself near the rim.
Fortunately, for both BI and the Lakers, their last line of defense in Tyson Chandler was there to block the shot at the apex of Young’s layup attempt. The final horn sounded, and the Lakers escaped with a 107-106 win over the Atlanta Hawks.
The Los Angeles Lakers Struggles Against The Atlanta Hawks
The Lakers (7-6) might have won five out of the last six games they’ve played but they still have a lot of work to do in order to function as one cohesive unit. Coming into Sunday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks, many basketball enthusiasts believed that this would have been an easy dub for the new-look Lakers but that definitely was not the case.
The Lakers clearly had the advantage on both sides of the court in regards to raw talent but, their recklessness with the basketball, missed free-throws, and unwillingness to rotate on defensive assignments hurt them throughout the game. The LA Lakers notched a total of 23 turnovers while shooting 15-24 from the charity stripe. Both teams shot approximately 43% from the field while the Hawks took advantage of the Lakers sloppy play by scoring 30 points off of turnovers.
The Lakers have a bad habit of allowing Lebron James to play one-on-one basketball down the stretch and it happened once again against the Atlanta Hawks. Night in and night out, James somehow ends up with the ball late in games and the entire offense comes to a complete standstill, forcing James to either take a difficult shot or put his teammates in a bad situation late in the shot clock.
This has to stop if the Lakers wish to be successful and make a deep playoff run.
Fortunately, a rebound dunk by Lebron James with just seconds left in the game, allowed the Lakers to take a 107-106 lead. But the 16x NBA Championship franchise was forced to close the game out on the defensive side of the ball. Luckily, the Compton-native, Tyson Chandler, was there to save the day.
Lebron James had a team-high of 26 points in 34 minutes of play, while the Hawks’, Taurean Prince, put on a shooting display of his own, earning 23 points on 9-13 shooting from the field. Check out full highlights of the Los Angeles Lakers nail-biter against the Atlanta Hawks below.
The Los Angeles Lakers take to the professional hardwood against the Portland Trailblazers next, this Wednesday, November, 14, at 7:30pm PST.
READ NEXT: WATCH: Hawks’ Trae Young Hits 3-Pointer From Midcourt Logo vs. Lakers