Lakers at Pacers
All-Star forward Paul George and center Myles Turner are off to good
starts but could use more help from their teammates when the Indiana
Pacers host the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. George scored 20 or
more points in all three games and Turner has two 20-point outings but
Indiana lost two of its first three games.
George is averaging 22.3 points and six rebounds and made 10-of-18 3-point attempts while the promising Turner is averaging 21 points and 10.3 rebounds. "It's a new group and it's going to take some time to jell," first-year coach Nate McMillan said after Saturday's 118-101 road loss to the Chicago Bulls. "As a group, we have to work better together." Los Angeles is looking to make progress under its own new coach in Luke Walton but the Lakers dropped the first two contests of a four-game trip after suffering a 113-96 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday. Second-year point guard D'Angelo Russell is averaging a team-best 16.3 points but is shooting a woeful 34 percent from the floor.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles), FSN Indiana
ABOUT THE LAKERS (1-2): Power forward Julius Randle has been terrific over the first three games while averaging 15 points on 67.9 percent shooting. Randle was one of just nine NBA players to average a double-double (11.3 points, 10.2 rebounds) last season and seems intent on taking another step forward this season. "I feel great," Randle told reporters in reference to the broken right leg he suffered in the 2014-15 season opener. "My body feels better than ever. Just getting back to being me."
ABOUT THE PACERS (1-2): Indiana is having trouble in the backcourt as offseason acquisition Jeff Teague is off to a poor start and backups Rodney Stuckey (hamstring) and Aaron Brooks (knee) are ailing. Teague (0-for-7) and starting shooting guard Monta Ellis (1-for-6) combined for just two points in the lackluster loss to the Bulls. "Our legs were tired," George said afterward. "In the third, I looked at the score, looked at the guys and said, 'We can get back into this.' But they kicked our butt. They had the edge and they brought the fight to us, which we had no way to counter."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Pacers have won five of the past six meetings.
2. Teague is averaging just eight points on 7-of-35 shooting.
3. Backup PG Jose Calderon (calf) made his Los Angeles debut on Sunday but played just four scoreless minutes.