Walton Wins in Debut, Lakers Beat Rockets 120-114

On Wednesday night, the 2016-17 Los Angeles Lakers did something the 2015-16 LA Lakers required five games to accomplish: win a game.

In a fun, high-scoring game that featured an energized Staples Center, the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 120-114 to give their coach, Luke Walton, his first official victory as an NBA head coach. Walton had previously guided the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors to a 39-4 record as an interim coach, but officially, Wednesday night went down as Walton's first victory as an NBA coach.

"It feels good, it feels really good," Walton said about the win after the game. "The guys really fought tonight. A big part of what we're trying to do is develop this identity, this culture."

Facing LA, Rockets guard James Harden recorded gaudy statistics with 34 points, 17 assists and eight rebounds on the night, as the LA-native nearly notched a double-double in the first quarter alone with 12 points and nine assists. Both teams scored 38 points in the first 12 minutes to lay the foundation of an offensive fun-fest for fans and a headache for Walton.

"Our offense?" Walton responded to a question about that end of the floor after his team put up 120 points in the victory. "I don't know. I keep stressing defense, but our offense is definitely looking better than our defense. But honestly, I think we put an emphasis on sharing the ball, just hitting the next open guy and not standing."

Walton admitted the strategy sounded basic, but the numbers backed up his philosophy. Nine different players on the Lakers recorded at least one assist, and no player attempted more than 16 field goal attempts. Starting point guard D'Angelo Russell claimed the high mark in field goal attempts, 16, in 29 minutes on the court. The 20-year-old scored 20 points to lead the Lakers' starters and hit four of his 10 three-point attempts.

Off the bench, though, Jordan Clarkson proved to be the hero of the night. The third-year guard finished with 25 points, 12 of which came in the furious fourth quarter that saw the Lakers hold Houston to only 18 points. Clarkson only played seven minutes in the first half, so when he saw extended time on the court in the second half, Clarkson played well enough to be singled out by his coach as the best player on the court in the second half.

"I only played five or six minutes in the first half," Clarkson said after the game. "The second half, I just stayed in the game, got flowing and they trusted me to make plays."

On the night, the Lakers took on contributions from deep into their bench, as 12 of the 13 active players got onto the court and contributed in one fashion or another. Even with standout performances up and down the front and back end of the rotation, Julius Randle stood out for his impressive all-around, box score filling game.

Randle finished the night with 18 points, six assists, seven rebounds and one block in 29 minutes. The 21-year-old also scored the Lakers' final two points with 45.2 second remaining on the clock to give LA a six-point advantage that held until the final buzzer. On the night, the former Kentucky Wildcat only missed two of his 11 field goal attempts, one of which was the forward's lone three-point attempt.

Without glossing over the defensive contribution of Nick Young, who earned a slightly surprising start on opening night, rookie Brandon Ingram played a mature 24 minutes considering the fresh faced 19-year-old experienced his first NBA game. The rookie made four of his six shots, scored his first NBA basket on a corner three-pointer and played stellar NBA-level defense.

Ingram played within the flow of the offense, and the 6-foot 8-inch former Duke Blue Devil even took on ball-handling duties as a point forward in his NBA debut. 

"When I got to the point guard position, it got a lot easier for me. I was making plays for my other teammates and plays for myself," Ingram said after the game.

After the game, Walton expressed his intention to use Ingram in the role in "every game," which reiterated the team's reliance on its young talent and, also, the special young talent the team possesses in the no. 2 overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft. 

Ingram admitted that he felt relieved to get his first game out of the way, "I can come in and get better every single game, repeat what I've done before and be more aggressive."

While Ingram was on the court, his team netted plus-10 points, which spoke volumes about the youngster's ability to not only play minutes at an NBA level but to, more importantly, contribute to winning basketball at the NBA level.

With a team heavily depending on young talent, the Lakers' 36-year-old coach collected his first NBA win in impressive fashion despite Harden's unbelievable night. The new Lakers took their first official steps towards developing a new culture.

The youthful Lakers took their first steps in forming a new identity in the post-Kobe Bryant era, and to the joy of their fans and their young coach, that process began with a win.