Rivers made 3 of 15 shots, and the Lakers lost to the Clippers. Without him, they can t even hope to win the championship!

The Lakers ushered in their last preseason game of the season. The entire team played today against the Kings' second team. Unexpectedly, the game was too ugly, and Rivers made 3 of 15 shots from the field. Doncic's efforts were in vain! In the end, the Lakers also lost to the Kings 116:117 and lost the game.

Today's game, the Lakers attach great importance to the lineup. In addition to James, the Lakers sent the strongest lineup, Ayton, Hachimura, Doncic, Rivers, and Vincent. However, their opponents lacked several key players. Sabonis didn't play, DeRozan and Monk didn't play, and the newly joined Westbrook didn't play. However, in this game that should have been easily won, the Lakers stumbled and lost the game. With this performance, if they were to compete for the championship, they would be laughed at.

Why did the Lakers lose? Just look at the data below. Overall, the Lakers' starting lineup today played pretty well. Four players scored in double figures. Smart, who came off the bench, also scored 14 points and contributed 4 steals. Looking at Rivers' performance, he made 3 of 15 shots and 0 of 7 three-pointers. One person lowered the team's statistics, and this was only on the offensive end.

On the defensive end, it was useless and was beaten completely by Schroeder. Schroeder scored 25 points in this game. Although he did not have a direct matchup with Rivers, his many attacks always looked for Rivers to break through.

So Rivers alone has lowered the overall level of the Lakers by a notch.

So what was Rivers' specific performance in the game? In a nutshell, it's all about self-confidence. If you can't make a shot, you have to make more shots. If you don't get a foul for a breakthrough, it's all in vain.

In the first quarter, the Lakers trailed the Kings by 3 points at 10:13. At this moment, Rivers scored a 3-pointer and hit the ground running. As a result, the Kings seized the opportunity to counterattack and scored a goal, widening the point difference to 5 points.

Later, after Hayes completed a dunk, the Lakers went ahead to 1 point at 34:33. Rivers scored another extended 3-pointer, but still missed. Ellis once again hit a chasing three-pointer, and the Kings took the lead again.

Shortly after the start of the second quarter, Rivers rushed to the basket. His physical fitness was too poor and he couldn't play at all. After his teammates got the rebound, Rivers made another mistake. In the next round, he confidently shot another 3-pointer from outside the 3-point line, but the result was still no. Then Rivers broke through with the ball again, and a pick-up basket was directly blocked.

The above attacks are the epitome of Rivers' entire game. He made 3 of 15 shots, which was too inefficient. This was only in the preseason. If it were in the regular season or playoffs and faced a team with very strong perimeter defense like the Thunder, Rivers would not be able to play at all.

So, can Rivers' characteristics, in the current Lakers, help the Lakers fight for the championship? From these aspects, it’s very surprising!

1. The offensive end is very unstable. In some games, Rivers can score 40 points, and in other games, he will have an extremely inefficient shooting rate. I believe that after watching the playoffs between the Timberwolves and the Lakers, it is basically certain that once the opponent defends him in a targeted manner, Rivers' offense is basically very unreliable.

2. The offensive end relies too much on referees. Before Doncic came to the Lakers, Rivers took the most free throws, and he also had his best season performance. However, once there were no free throws, Rivers' performance dropped directly to another level. After Doncic came, it was impossible for the uniforms to get so many free throws. Just like today, Rivers only had 2 free throws without any free throws, and there was no deterrent on the offensive end.

3. The problem on the defensive end cannot be solved at all. Facts have proved that players with strong defensive abilities in the NBA have one thing in common, that is, they are very strong. This is the basic threshold. Rivers obviously does not have such conditions. Although he has worked hard, his talent is limited after all.

As for Rivers' performance, the real challenge is coming for the Lakers, and that is the issue of contract renewal. Previously, Rivers had clearly rejected the four-year, $90 million offer from the Lakers. Yuan's contract was renewed in advance, and Rivers' team also released news that Rivers will seek a maximum salary contract. This amount is a bit scary. His maximum salary contract can reach 5 years and 200 million U.S. dollars, which is an annual salary of 40 million U.S. dollars.

So now, for the Lakers, should they keep Rivers? And this decision must be made this season, otherwise next season, Rivers will jump out of the player option and leave directly. As for the Lakers, if they don't want to renew Rivers' contract with a high salary, they can only trade him this season.

Of course, if the Lakers give Rivers an annual salary of 40 million, don't be surprised. From a rational point of view, it is too expensive. However, the Lakers management often does the opposite of what the fans expect. Therefore, the Lakers management is very likely to offer Rivers a large contract of about 40 million. Then Doncic's championship dream may be far away.

Rejected 90 million in 4 years! Rivers made 3 of 15, and the Lakers lost to the Clippers. Without him, they can't even hope to win the championship!