If Stanley Johnson looks like he’s defending as though his life is on the line, that’s because it is.
OK, maybe that’s slightly overdramatic. It’s “just” Johnson’s NBA life that is on the line over the duration of his current 10-day, hardship exemption contract with the Lakers. His life is (presumably) not actually in peril.
But the point still stands: The former No. 8 overall pick from Fullerton is defending his ass off, doing everything in his power to make it impossible for the team he grew up rooting for to cut him.