Despite the relatively weak opposition, the Lakers have, for whatever reason, played their best basketball in the tournament. Around the quarterfinals of the season, the knockout stage, starting with KD and Book, provides Ham’s team with a valuable gauge in the form of a high-stakes setting against elite opposition.
It’s not your typical, everyday game, Ham remarked. “Due to the matchup alone, it will undoubtedly be a high-level game even without the added elements of the In-Season Tournament. There is more pressure because there is more on the line with the addition of the In-Season Tournament. Thus, at this stage of the season, playing that way is the closest thing you can get to the playoffs.
Some games might require some time to catch up and perform at this level. That’s what it is if it takes a few weeks. We will eventually arrive.
In the offseason, Kane had hip resurfacing surgery. Having skated for a few weeks, he claimed that his conditioning is not a problem.
He remarked, “Just more almost learning the game again.” “Hopefully, if you practice something for one, two, or three games, it will come quite naturally to you. I have faith that I will succeed. You just need to exercise a little patience with it.
Kane, Joe Veleno, and Alex DeBrincat skated together on a line. J.T. Compher, who took a day off but will be back in the lineup on Tuesday, was being replaced by Veleno. It’s likely that Kane will begin skating with Compher and DeBrincat, his former Chicago teammate.
“I believe he needed those repetitions because this was his first practice in a long time,” Lalonde stated. “Those are actual reps—the kind of five-on-five reps. On Wednesday during practice, you should probably give him a similar glance and decide from there.
A seasoned player like Kane is much easier to integrate into the system, according to Lalonde.
“With his background and intelligence level, even guiding him through structure at this moment, it’s not unfamiliar to him and it seems to make sense,” Lalonde remarked. He is able to participate in our process and see it more. I believe the structural transition will be fairly smooth.
This is a close-knit team, as Kane said he can tell right away.
He remarked, “It looks like they have a lot of fun together at the rink.” “Considering the teams we were successful with in Chicago, I believe that’s a major indicator of successful teams. Off the ice, our teams were extremely close.
Kane is optimistic that he will recover just as tennis player Andy Murray did, having undergone the procedure in 2018.
“I know he’s doing really well; I had a conversation with someone that knew him,” Kane remarked. “I watched ‘Resurfacing,’ the documentary by Murray. He made the decision to go to the resurfacing after having a few scopes as well, and it appears that he has had great success.
“Look at some players who’ve done it in the past; perhaps they’re nearing the end of their career and it didn’t really work for them,” he continued. However, I’m very optimistic about it and believe more players will adopt this strategy. Jesse Puljujarvi, who was formerly from Edmonton and Carolina, did both of them, I believe. He is returning and doing well. Just keep moving forward. I make an effort to monitor it daily and take the proper care of it, so hopefully everything works out well.
Kane is adjusting to his new environment. Before last Thursday’s game against Chicago, he made the mistake of being dropped off in front of the arena, drawing a large crowd.
“It wasn’t exactly the ideal game to be out in public and have people in Chicago jerseys come up to you and recognize you,” he remarked. “It gets difficult after you get out of the car and someone notices you. While trying to keep your head down and move forward, you paused and snapped a few photos with perhaps fifteen to twenty people.
