James Worthy amazed with Marcus Smart performance for LA Lakers, but says another underrated player was ‘key’

Sportpluse
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NBA Corridor of Famer James Worthy analyzes the LA Lakers’ first win of the season.

After an underwhelming begin to the 2025-26 NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers have registered their first win of the marketing campaign.

It was a 128-110 victory towards the Minnesota Timberwolves, spearheaded by none aside from Luka Doncic, who was one level shy of scoring 50.

Moreover, Deandre Ayton emerged as a Rudy Gobert stopper, however let’s put that on the again burner.

Picture by Ronald Martinez/Getty Photographs

NBA Corridor of Famer and former Laker James Worthy shared his trustworthy views on the Lakers’ dominant win vs. the T-Wolves.

Worthy believes it was Marcus Sensible who modified the sport for the Lakers together with his infectious vitality.

“The sport actually modified when Marcus Sensible got here into the sport. It’s superb how contagious his vitality is,” Worthy mentioned.

Sensible could have completed the evening with simply 3 factors, 1 help, and a couple of steals, however his influence can’t be justified by the field rating.

In any case, Sensible had a plus-minus of +24, rising as a frontrunner for the staff and for head coach JJ Redick when it mattered most.

With LeBron James sidelined, the Lakers are largely counting on Doncic and Austin Reaves to deal with many of the scoring burden.

Nevertheless, till James comes again, Rui Hachimura must step up and fill that void as a 3rd star. Whereas Rui failed to take action towards the Golden State Warriors, he rectified his mistake vs. the Timberwolves.

“I believed the important thing tonight was Rui; he solely acquired a few rebounds, however his exercise offensively was a risk,” Worthy said.

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For context, Hachimura added 23 factors to the Lakers’ tally and shot an excellent 10-of-13 from the ground.

Shifting ahead, Hachimura must drop comparable performances for the Lakers to reach the ever-so-competitive Western Convention.

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