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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreIt only took one playoff game for the L.A Lakers to force late-to-the-party NBA reporters and analysts to suddenly switch positions and promote the 7th seeded purple and gold from a pretender to legitimate contender.
The Los Angeles Lakers have always believed that a healthy LeBron James and Anthony Davis surrounded by a roster that complemented them was all they needed to have a legitimate chance to win an NBA championship.
Ironically, that’s exactly where the Lakers find themselves after a trade deadline roster makeover and late season resurgence. The new-look Lakers suddenly are fully heathy and playing as well as any team in the league.Fortunately, the parity in the West that resulted from expanding the postseason to include more teams via play-in tournament and balancing the odds of getting the top draft pick are likely to extend into the playoffs.
We’ve aready seen three Western Conference teams — Lakers, Kings, and Clippers — pull off First Round Game 1 upsets and players returning from injury and getting injured are already changing the playoffs’ dynamic.Unfortunately, heath is the issue for the Lakers, who dodged a bullet when Davis was able to return for the second half after suffering what appeared to be a serious injury late in the first half for the second time in two weeks.
But even if the Lakers can remain healthy, the path to the championship this season is still daunting with the Grizzlies, Warriors, Suns, and Nuggets representing a fierce gauntlet of serious strong teams to overcome.With the West so wide open, are the new-look L.A. Lakers contenders or pretenders? Could they realistically win their 18th NBA championship this season? Let’s look closer at the pros and cons of a Lakers championship.
The Pros
The chances the Lakers win the NBA championship this season start with a healthy and rested LeBron James and Anthony Davis, much like they did back in 2020 when the Lakers dominated the bubble to win their 18th title.
The brilliant roster makeover engineered by Rob Pelinka at the trade deadline transformed a poorly constructed and incomplete Lakers roster into a deep and diverse team with seven key difference-making players.
Besides superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the new-look Lakers backcourt of the future of D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves gives the team two elite scorers and playmakers who can play on or off the ball.The Grizzlies saw firsthand the new offensive power the Lakers have with the Russell and Reaves backcourt as the Lakers’ due outscored the Grizzlies starting backcourt of Ja Morant and Desmond Bane 42–40 for the game.
The Lakers traded Westbrook and the ‘three-superstar model’ for Russell and Reaves and the ‘two-superstars-and-two-stars model.’ These four are now the Lakers core. The core four each scored over 20 points in Game 1.The new-look Lakers roster goes beyond the core four. Pelinka brought in smart BBIQ role players who could be difference-makers and give coach Darin Ham different buttons to push to win close games in the playoffs.
Jarred Vanderbilt starts next to the core four as their lock down defender while Dennis Schröder and Rui Hachimura are the energy players off Ham’s bench. All three are difference makers who could win a game.The Laker also have two wild card players in Malik Beasley and Mo Bamba who have the potential to have huge positive impact but will have to be brought along carefully and integrated into the rotation by Darvin Ham.
Malik Beasley gives the Lakers that feared high volume 3-point shooter for whom teams have to game plan while Mo Bamba gives Los Angeles a true backup center who can both protect the rim and stretch the floor.Lakers have two healthy superstars, two elite combo guards, and three to five difference-makers who add elite size, shooting, and defense. They have a starting lineup and 7-10 man rotation that could win a championship.
The Cons
The biggest reason to question whether the Los Angeles Lakers can win an NBA championship is obviously the health of their often injured superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, both of whom have in and out this year.
Frankly, the only reason the Lakers are the 7th seed rather than 2nd seed is their terrible 2–10 start and parade of untimely injuries to LeBron James and Anthony Davis that would have derailed the team but for league parity.
Talent wise, this Lakers team lealthy is probably the most dangerous 7th seed in the history of the NBA. They’re playing as well as any team in the league and have an elite starting lineup and deep and diverse benchNow that the Lakers are finally healthy, can they realistically stay that way? Superstars James and Davis have missed large periods of the season due to foot injuries as have point guards D’Angelo Russell and Dennis Schröder
We already saw another Anthony Davis injury scare late in the first half of Game 1 where he sufferred what looked like a major injury only to come back in the second half. This is second time this has happened this month.While it’s no slam dunk that James and Anthony will be able to stay healthy, the other negative is how little time key rotation players on the roster have had to play together due to ongoing injuries and late date of the trades.
If there is another negative to the Lakers new-look lineup, it’s that winning might be more realistic next season after the team had more time to gell and learn how to win together as a team. Hard to do that late in the season.While the Lakers have the superstars and supporting cast to win the NBA championship, their greatest challenge will be for their superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis to remain healthy throughout the entire playoffs.
The Odds
After their big Game 1 win, the Los Angeles Lakers have the 6th lowest odds to win the 2022–23 NBA championship behind the Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, Philadelphia 76ers, and Denver Nuggets.
Realistically, the Lakers at this point would likely be underdogs to any of those five teams. The challenge for them as a relatively newly formed team will be to elevate the level of their play as they move from series to series.
We will find out soon whether the healthy new-look Lakers can build the necessary continuity and chemistry to beat established championship caliber teams like the Milwaukee Bucks or Golden State Warriors.The Lakers’ next big test will come tomorrow night when they will have an opportunity to kick the disappointed Memphis Grizzies in the face and set up a first round sweep and get valuable time off before the second round.
The playoff are an accelerating series of tests from game to game and from series to series. The opponents get better, the challenges greater, the path tougher, and winning harder each round. Teams grow into champions.The Lakers looked great winning Game 1. They have found a formula that works and need to repeat it. Approach every game as if it was win or go home. Do not waste series, games, possessiions. One down, fifteen to go.
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3 Comments-
LakerTom1 year, 7 months ago
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The Lakers believe a healthy James and Davis with complementary roster was all they needed to win a championship.
Ironically, that’s exactly where the Lakers find themselves after a trade deadline roster makeover and late season resurgence.https://t.co/uYkkR9BPni
— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 18, 2023
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Of course health is the most important thing, not just with us, but every team. I was encouraged that our role players stepped up on the road. Role players often have good games at home but not as often on the road. That was a good sign. The role players will need to continue to step up. That will help both AD and LeBron if the role players can make enough plays to take the focus off of them.
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreOverall, the Lakers and Grizzlies appear to be two fairly evenly matched teams, with the 2nd seed Grizzlies starting out as slight favorites over the 7th seed Lakers for their Sunday first round playoff game in Memphis.
The two teams met three times during the regular season, with the Lakers winning two out of three but never with all three stars. LeBron missed two of the three games, Davis one of the three, and Morant one of the three.
Since the trade deadline, the Lakers 115.6 OffRtg is #14, their 110.8 DefRtg is #2, and their +4.8 NetRtg #6 in the league while the Grizzlies 116.7 OffRtg is #12, their 113.0 DefRtg is #10, and their +3.7 NetRtg is #9 in the league.While the Grizzlies have home court advantage, the Lakers are not only finally getting fully healthy but also peaking at exact right time. Here are four reasons why Lakers should dominate and beat the Grizzlies in six.
1. Superstars
In the NBA, superstars win championships and as dynamic and exciting as the Grizzlies’ Ja Morant is as a superstar, there’s just no way he can match the combined superstar firepower of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Where the Lakers superstar advantage dominates is in the matchups. While the Lakers will struggle to defend Ja Morant, the Grizzlies do not have the size or individua defenders to slow down Anthony Davis or LeBron James.
Jaren Jackson, Jr. is not going to outplay Anthony Davis or Dillon Brooks keep up with LeBron James but Jarred Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura are the long, physical, athletic wings who can make Morant work for his shots.In the end, a healthy and rested James and Davis will be too much for the young Grizzlies. Lakers will steal one of the two games in Memphis, sweep the two in L.A, lose Game 5 in Memphis but then win Game 6 in L.A.
2. Experience
Experience is a prerequisite to winning in the playoffs and there is no way 23-year old Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson, Jr. can match the chanpionship expierence of 38-year old LeBron James and 30-year old Anthony Davis.
James and Davis proved in the bubble in 2020 that they could carry a team to the NBA championship. Now they are finally healthy and ready to show they’re still the best superstar duo on the planet by winning their 18th title.
Morant and Jackson, Jr. will have an uphill challenge to defeat what is a dramatically better Lakers team than the one that aready beat them two out of three times this season. Missing Adams and Clarke is not going to help.Bottom line, the veteran playoff and championship experience of LeBron James and Anthony Davis gives the Lakers a big advantage over an untested Grizzies roster that just won their first ever playoff series last season.
3. Health
Every NBA season proves a player’s greastest ability is still his availability. Fortunately for the Lakers, for the very first time this season, they are finally and completely healthy with all 15 players on the roster available.
That means the Lakers will play their best starting lineup for just the eighth time this Sunday. It means they’ll have Mo Bamba, their backup center for the first time in over a month. Lakers are getting healthy at the right time.
Meanwhile, the Memphis Grizzlies will be missing their starting center in Steven Adams and key backup forward off the bench in Brandon Clarke. Xavier Tillman is the undersized backup who will start for Steven AdamsThe Grizzlies may have the better record and home court advantage but the Los Angeles Lakers are now 100% healthy whereas the Memphis Grizzlies will be missing two important front court players in Adams and Clarke.
4. Momentum
Momentum could be the x-factor that favors LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the new-look Lakers over the belicose, rebelluous Ja Morant and the ‘show-me-some-respect’ Memphis Grizzlies in their first round matchup.
LeBron, AD, and the Lakers are on a vision-quest to rise from the ashes of a 2–10 start and win their league-leading 18th NBA championship whereas Ja and the Grizzlies just want to salvage something from this horrid season.
Many had written off the Grizzlies before the Morant situation was resolved without irrepable damage but the team has competed and managed to stop the bleeding. Whether they can beat the Lakers though is another question.Right now, the Lakers are positioned for a deep playoff run that could lead to their 18th NBA championship. They’re finally healthy and have what could be considered to be a favorable path to title. That’s momentum.
15 Comments-
Four Reasons Lakers Should Dominate Grizzlies & Win First Round Matchup
1. Superstars
2. Experience
3. Health
4. Momentumhttps://t.co/OZyADSEAQS— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 14, 2023
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I am worried about the Grizzlies’ speed. I felt that the Lakers’ guards couldn’t stay with the Clippers ’cause they weren’t able to deal with a fast team. And Memphis is faster. We need to hope that the Grizz double AD so we can retaliate by doubling Ja; we’d need the full time efforts f Austin and Vando to try to contain Ja. I’m not sure Rui is the right person to restrain Ja; he could contain JJJ perhaps. I’m crossing my fingers that on Sunday we won’t be blown out of water. If we can slow down the game and make Grizz play half court offense, we may have a shot, not otherwise.
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Dean, I agree 100% that speed is our biggest danger. In the one loss to the Grizzlies, we allowed 80 points in the paint which included 33 fast break points. Our guards basically could not stay in front of their guards.
I think the solution is to do the same with Morant as we did with Edwards, which was switch everything on him but don’t trail on the pick and let him put you in jail. Mix that with trapping whenever AD’s man sets the pick.
The Lakers found the formula to control the tempo and prevent penetration against the Wolves. They need to play that same kind of defense Sunday and prevent Ja from going off. The other thing is for whomever Ja defends to attack the basket.
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Pretty much agree with all of this but would add another category: Physicality. As in, to what level of physicality is this series going to generally be played at?
With this being a series played mainly on the Grizzlies home floor one would expect that they give the home team some leeway in terms of establishing a level of physicality. That’s also something the Lakers can control by coming into the game and out of the half with the right focus and energy. Still, if the refs let Brooks get in James’ jersey every game and let Jackson body up AD this series will be difficult.
So much of our offense (and defense, honestly) relies on free throws. If that whistle isn’t blowing do we have enough to keep up with the fleet of foot Memphis squad? All of the games between the 2 teams had 20+ FTA’s for each squad with a ridiculous 40+ each in the first game played. The Lakers need to figure out what the refs are calling a foul and do their best to use that to some kind of advantage.
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Yes, physicality is a serious factor, but I’m not as worried about it as I am about speed, which always favors the younger team.
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Speed can kill, and between Morant, Brooks and JJ they have elite speed at three key positions . I just see us losing the series if we can’t gain the physical advantage, especially in the half court. Don’t let Brooks get into ‘Bron’s head with his antics, bump Ja all the way down the floor (something Caruso was excellent at but Reaves really doesn’t explore and isn’t in D-Lo’s NBA DNA but is in Schröder’s) and AD has to outplay JJ every game. Whether that’s through speed or strength doesn’t really matter, I suppose.
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No, he didn’t factor into anything Chicago did. I’d say it’s more a shame we don’t have Thomas Bryant to add a quicker/bigger hustle option over Wenyan. I don’t see a big role for Bamba who is not quick or prone to hustling. There’s no slow of foot center on Memphis so you can’t play him in a small ball line up, they’ll simply run him off the floor and I doubt his ability to make a three pointer changes that.
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Young, talented and hungry vs. old, injury prone. Only way this is a competitive series is if the league decides to not give Ja calls because of the gun stuff.
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We only have 2 old guys if you want to count Thompson. Griz average age is 24 ours is 26 and that’s with LeBron.
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Maybe, but how many of the young Lakers carry this squad? An injury to either Lebron or AD and it’s a wrap.
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I think Austin, Rui, Vand & DLo are as good as we can hope for. Our guys defer to Bron & AD, especially Austin, but they’re capable of running the charge by themseles if need be. An injury to AD will be devastating but I’m not coninced of the same with the other. Hopefully we won’t need to test it.
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I love this team and their potential. I’ve also not given up on Beasley or Bamba and think both could have big games for us down the road. But a core of James, Davis, Russell, and Reaves is a great start. Add in Vando, Rui, Dennis, Troy, Malik, and Mo. That’s a damn good 10-man rotation. Can’t afford to keep all of them if we win but the core 7, yes.
Lakers Tiers
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1. Superstars: LeBron, AD
2. Stars: Austin and DLo
3. Diff-Makers: Vando, Rui, Dennis
4. Prospects: Mo, Malik
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreAfter a dismal start in a season of parity, the remade Los Angeles Lakers have overcome long odds and are a play-in game win away from becoming one of the most dangerous 7th seeds in the history of the NBA playoffs.
The Lakers’ playoff path to their league best 18th NBA championship will begin tomorrow night when, as the 7th seed, they host the 8th seed Minnesota Timberwoves in a Western Conferenece 7/8 Play-In game.
While the Lakers hoped to win the 6th seed and avoid the risk of running into a hot-shooting team and losing in the Play-In, they’re still supremely confident they can beat the Wolves on Tuesday to make the NBA playoffs.Despite a terrible start and a tumultuous season, the Lakers finally have a healthy LeBron James and Anthony Davis and believe their new look lineup and rotation is capable of winning their 18th NBA championship this year.
Parity has opened the doors wide-open for a half dozen NBA teams who think they can win it all this year. The Lakers consider themselves to be one of those teams despite having to participate in the Play-In Tournament.So let’s take a deeper dive into how parity has leveled the playing field in the West, how the Lakers full roster is finally healthy and available, and how the team’s 7th seed is giving them a favorable championship path.
1. Parity Has Leveled Playing Field
The only reason the Los Angeles Lakers were able to keep their playoff hopes alive until the trade deadline and despite a poor start to the season was the near complete parity that leveled the playing field in the West.
Besides keeping the Lakers playoff window open, parity has also made it abundantly clear that there is no obvious favorite to win the championship this season. Instead, a half dozen NBA teams now claim to be contenders.
In the West, the favorites are probably the Phoenix Suns followed by the Los Angeles Clippers and Lakers. In the East, the favorites are likely the Milwaukee Bucks followed by the Boston Celtics and Philadephia 76ers.The lack of a truly dominant team, the large number of superstars recovering from major injuries, and the crazy seeding caused by the parity has made it difficut to predict what’s going to happen in these playoffs.
Frankly, every contending team has weaknesses and vulnerabilities that can be taken advantage of and has at times during the past season had periods of great struggle. This is as wide-open as the NBA has ever been.Finally at full strength after a plague of injuries and a late midseason makeover, the Lakers are now ready to use their new starting lineup and deep and diverse roster to take full advantage of the parity in the West.
2. New Look Roster Is Finally Healthy
The primary reason the Lakers believe they can win their 18th NBA championship this year is their full roster after their trade deadline makeover is healthy and available for the first time this season.
Because of injuries to both superstars and key rotation players and late moves at the trade deadline, the Lakers have only been able to play the above starting lineup in five games this season, winning four of them.
Since the trade deadline, the Lakers have posted an 18–8 record, second best in the league. Their 115.6 offensive rating since the trade deadline ranks 14th, 110.8 defensive rating ranks 2nd, and +4.8 net rating ranks 6th.With LeBron James and Anthony Davis finally healthy and the trade deadline moves creating a deeper, more diverse roster, the Lakers should be one of the most dangerous 7th seeds in the history of the NBA playoffs.
In retrospect, Rob Pelinka and the Lakers front office deserve kuddos for making the right moves at the deadline and Darvin Ham and his coaching staff deserve praise for getting the new roster playing at an elite level.The Los Angeles Lakers’ new starting lineup has been a great success. Russell, Reaves, Vanderbilt, James, and Davis have appeared in 64 minutes in 7 games and have posted a 123.5 OffRtg, 103.0 DefRtg, and +20.6 NetRtg.
3. Championship Path Is Favorable
Should the Lakers win the 7/8 Play-In Tournament game next Tuesday against the Pelicans or Timberwolves, their path to the NBA Finals per the sports books would likely include the Grizzlies, Warriors, and Suns.
Contrast that with the path the Lakers would have faced had they beaten the Clippers and ended up as 5th seed. Then they would have had to face the Suns, Nuggets, and Grizzlies, which is a far more difficult gauntlet.
The Lakers could easily find themselves eliminated by the Suns in the first round had they been the 5th seed. Now, as the 7th seed, they will face the 2nd seed Memphis Grizzlies, whom they beat two out of three this year.Should the Lakers prevail over the Grizzlies in the first round, their likely second round opponent would be the Warriors, another team against which they match up well, having beaten them three out of four times this year.
A win over the Warriors would most likely catapult the Los Angeles Lakers into a Western Conference Finals with the Phoenix Suns, whom like the Lakers could suddenly find themselves fully healthy for the playoffs.No fairy tale story is complete without a great ending, which for the Los Angeles Lakers would be to defeat the Boston Celtics in the 2022–23 NBA Finals to win what would be their league leading 18th NBA championship.
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5 Comments-
Three Reasons Lakers Can Win Their 18th NBA Championship This Year?
1. Parity Has Leveled Playing Field
2. New Look Roster Is Finally Healthy
3. Championship Path Is Favorablehttps://t.co/kbDnFTComM— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 10, 2023
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Other than glossing over the actual playin game a pretty solid read. I also wouldn’t go so far as to say we’re fully healthy or anything like that, not with D-Lo taking it day-to-day with a myriad of nagging injuries, AD playing on what is essentially a broken foot, Schroder dealing with some right Achilles soreness and LeBron playing on a partially torn/ruptured tendon.
But, yeah, other than that fully-ish healthy.
Of the potential spots we could have landed I like 7 as much as anything. We never were in reach of home court advantage in a series, would have had the same path as we do now with just a different first round matchup had we gotten to 6 (and more importantly extra rest) and if we take care of business against Minnesota I don’t think we play until Sunday which would be most excellent.
Need to have a healthy Schroder to run the second unit or to step in if D-Lo’s back/hip/foot/what have you doesn’t allow him to go in a game(s). Not really counting on the recent signings for much beyond waving towels and high fives. Feels like AD and LBJ are playing on a wing and a prayer, essentially, but there doesn’t seem to be any better options.
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Considering we got to start our desired starting lineup for just the 6th time this season, this is the closest we’ve come to having everybody available, even Bamba.
If Dennis can go, that’s the best we’ve been able to field so far this season. Not that hard to accept that as a potential difference maker. Come on, Jamie. 6th time out of 82 games.
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Dennis sounds like he can go so that’s great news. Still wouldn’t go so far as to say “fully healthy” but could be persuaded to dive into the “everyone is available” pool.
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreThe Lakers’ win over the Wolves last night included everything their fans and coaches could want, including Davis continuing to take the torch from James and the purple and gold putting on offensive and defensive clinics.
The 39–38 Lakers are currently in 7th place in the West, 1.5 games behind the 41–37 Warriors and Clippers, who are essentially tied for 6th and 5th seeds in the West. Lakers own tie-breaker over Warriors but not Clippers.
Lakers have 5 games left: @ Rockets, @ Jazz, @ Clippers, vs Suns, vs Jazz. Warriors have 4 games left: @ Nuggets, vs Thunder, @ Kings, @ Blazers. Clippers have 4 games left: @ Pelicans, vs Lakers, vs Blazers, @ Suns.Last night’s game was the Lakers’ biggest win of the season. With Davis again playing like an MVP and James slowly working his way back into game shape after missing over a month, the Lakers wil be a playoff nightmare.
Like Isaiah Thomas said, there’s no team in the West that wants to face the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. Right now, it looks like the likely #3 seed Kings are the team the #6 seed Lakers would play in first round.With just 4 games to go, the Lakers right now have a lock on the 7th seed at worst and a good chance to move up to the #6 seed and get a week off for injured superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis to rest and recover.
The Lakers can expect a lot of strategic positioning moves over the last few games as teams try to win or lose games to avoid having to play L.A. in the first round of the playoffs. Going to be interesting to see what teams do.With the West wide open, the Lakers sent a message to the rest of the NBA with their dominating win last night on the road against the Timberwolves: Expect the 2023 NBA Championship to go through the Los Angeles Lakers.
Anthony Davis Takes Torch from LeBron James
Anthony Davis’ injury woes the past three seasons have led many Lakers fans to lose faith that he could ever prove to be good or healthy enough to take the torch from LeBron James as the Lakers leading prime superstar.
With James still working to get back to superstar status after being out for a month, Anthony Davis came to the rescue again, taking over and carrying the Lakers on his back for a second straight MVP-quality performance.
Anthony Davis not only led the Lakers to the team’s biggest win of the season but he did it on a bum ankle that he sprained early in the third quarter just as the Lakers were surging to get back into the game.I remember thinking as the game went to commercial that this might be the end of the Lakers’ season and wondering whether this also might be the injury that finally forced the Lakers to consider trading Anthony Davis.
Fortunately, Davis was able to walk off the injury and elevated his play to another level as the Lakers halfcourt defense shut down the Timberwolves and the Lakers closed the game by relentlessly going to AD in the post.If the Lakers are going to win their 18th NBA championship this season, it will be because Anthony Davis finally elevates his game to MVP level and at last takes the torch from LeBron James and the Lakers become his team.
New Lakers’ Starting Lineup Sizzles
The Los Angeles Lakers’ new-look starting lineup of Russell, Reaves, Vanderbilt, James, and Davis has now played together for 25 minutes and posted a sizzling 132.0 OffRtg, stifling 108.5 DefRtg, and +23.5 NetRtg.
The new-look starting lineup provides the Lakers with a balanced two-way lineup that possesses excellent size, length, athleticism, and versatility while balancing the team’s need for shooting, playmaking, and defense.
Russell and Reaves provide the Lakers with a backcourt that can shoot, playmake, and defend. Davis, James, and Vanderbilt provide the Lakers with a front court that can switch and defend every position on the court.As the Lakers head into the playoffs, Ham is also smartly narrowing his rotation down to 8 key players, the five starters plus Schröder, Hachimura, and Gabriel with additional spot minutes from Brown, Jr. and Beasley.
The only possible change could be the re-insertion of backup center Mo Bamba into the rotation. While Gabriel has been playing well, getting Bamba back would give the Lakers another desperately needed big man.The Lakers greatest challenge to successfully finishing the season is health. Rob Pelinka’s moves at the trade deadline clearly gave the Lakers a major roster upgrade. The only question is whether the trades came too late.
Lakers’ Defense Dominates Timberwolves
After trailing the Wolves 65–55 at halftime, the Lakers essentially came out and shut Minnesota down, holding them to just 18 points in the 3rd quarter and just 18 in the fourth quarter plus 10 garbage points in last two minutes.
With Anthony Davis, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Rui Hachimura protecting the rim in the second half, the Lakers turned the Timberwolves into a jump shooting team as they went from down 10 to up 7 to start 4th quarter.
Besides Davis and Vanderbilt, Shroder, Hachimura, and Gabriel all had outstanding second halves as they led Lakers’ dominant defensive charge, making steals, deflecting passes, blocking shots, and taking charges.Overall, the third quarter was probably the best defensive quarter the Lakers have had all year long. Ironically, right in the middle of this great 3rd quarter defensive run was when Anthony Davis twisted his ankle.
If there was a moment this season when everything hung in the balance, it was there in the third quarter when AD went down in pain holding onto his ankle. Fortunately, AD said later he was playing Sunday for sure.Since the trade deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers’ 110.3 defensive ranking was #1 in the entire league. They also lead the league in rebounding and rank best in the NBA in defending without sending opponents to the line.
Lakers’ Offense Feeds AD To Close Game
One of the major traits of a great NBA coach is the ability to find weakness in the other team’s defense and then relentlessly attack that weakness until the other team makes an adjustment. Darvin Ham is learning that fast.
Once the Lakers had built a 10-point lead over the Timberwolves, they displayed some of their best offensive discipline we’ve seen this season as they consistently got the ball to Anthony Davis where he could score at will.
So many times over the last three seasons, we’ve seen the Lakers find an opening in the opponent’s defense only to ignore it going forward and start playing iso-ball with LeBron or Anthony rather than running a set play.Last night, we saw the opposite. Even though he was limping a little from his twisted ankle, the Lakers either ran pick-and-rolls to get AD easy dunks or floaters or down-picks so he could catch the ball moving to the basket.
Best of all, Russell and Schröder never let the Wolves off the hook. Instead, every single time down the court they set up plays to get the ball to AD, often coming off a down-pick and/or rolling to the hoop for an easy shot.The ability to be hyper-focused and successful in getting Anthony Davis the ball to close out games was a huge development in the Lakers’ half-court schemes that should help them in those critical end game situations.
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This was a big win for Lakers for 3 reasons:
1. AD taking torch from LeBron
2. Defense shutting down Wolves
3. Offense getting ball to ADThis is the formula from now through 16 playoff wins.
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Anthony Davis Takes Torch from LeBron James
If the Lakers win their 18th NBA championship this season, it will be because Anthony Davis finally elevates his game to MVP level and at last takes the torch from LeBron James and the Lakers become his team.https://t.co/flQvnDXkVl pic.twitter.com/SduMCPQfxw— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 2, 2023
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New Lakers’ Starting Lineup Sizzles
The Los Angeles Lakers’ new-look starting lineup of Russell, Reaves, Vanderbilt, James, and Davis has now played together for 25 minutes and posted a sizzling 132.0 OffRtg, stifling 108.5 DefRtg, and +23.5 NetRtg.https://t.co/flQvnDXkVl pic.twitter.com/skTgHyUEho— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 2, 2023
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Lakers’ Defense Dominates Timberwolves
After trailing Wolves 65–55 at half, Lakers essentially came out and shut Minnesota down, holding them to just 18 points in 3rd quarter and just 18 in fourth quarter plus 10 garbage points in last two minutes.https://t.co/flQvnDXkVl pic.twitter.com/j15dHWTMXO— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 2, 2023
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Lakers’ Offense Feeds AD To Close Game
One of major traits of great NBA coaches is ability to find weakness in the other team’s defense and then relentlessly attack that weakness until the other team makes an adjustment. Darvin Ham is learning that fast.https://t.co/flQvnDXkVl pic.twitter.com/DZEsbunwU7— LakerTom (@LakerTom) April 2, 2023
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreAfter being on life support for first 76 games of the regular season, thanks to parity the #8 Los Angeles Lakers are perfectly positioned with 6 games to go to jump the #7 Wolves and #6 Warriors and win the #6 seed in the West.
Tomorrow night, the #8 Lakers visit the #7 Timberwolves in a game that could catapult Los Angeles past Minnesota to take over the #7 seed in the West, getting home court advantage in the Play-In Game for 7th seed.
A win tomorrow night would also leave the Lakers 1 loss from being able to use their tie-breaker to knock Golden State into the Play-In Tournament and steal the #6 seed in the West and guaranteed playoff spot from them.After a season filled with the constant pressure of ‘must win’ games, the last thing the Lakers want at this point in the season is to be forced to win one or two crucial games in the Play-In Tourney to make the NBA playoffs.
The Lakers will be under intense win-or-go-home pressure for each of their next 6 games while still facing a daunting challenge trying to reintegrate LeBron James into a lineup that finally learned how to win without him.Here are four compelling reasons why the Los Angeles Lakers desperately need to win the 6th seed in the West over the next 6 games to avoid having to participate in what is likely to be a tough, gruelling Play-In Tournament.
1. 6th Seed Guarantees Playoff Spot
The biggest benefit of winning the 6th seed in the West is the team is one of the six teams who are guaranteed a spot in the NBA playoffs. Unlike the four teams who finished 7th through 10th, 6th seed can relax. They’re in.
2. 6th Seed Gets Week Off Before Playoffs
The next big advantage of winning the 6th seed is a week off before the playoffs. For a team like the Lakers, getting a week for LeBron and AD to rest and recover and the team to actually practice together would be gold.
3. 6th Seed Plays 3rd Seed Sacramento Kings
Unlike the 7th through 10th seeds, the 6th seed knows they will play the 3rd seed in the first round of the playoffs. Frankly, there is no better first round opponent for this Lakers team than the playoff newbie Sacramento Kings.
4. 6th Seed Avoids Nuggets and Clippers
The other benefit of winning 6th seed is not having to meet #1 Nuggets, #4 Suns, #5 Clippers, or whomever emerges from the Play-In as #8. Our bracket inclues #6 Kings, #2 Grizzies, and whoever wins the #7 seed.
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Four Reasons Why Lakers Must Win 6th Seed and Avoid Play-In Tourney
1. 6th Seed Guarantees Playoff Spot
2. 6th Seed Gets Week Off Before Playoffs
3. 6th Seed Plays 3rd Seed Sacramento Kings
4. 6th Seed Avoids Nuggets and Clippershttps://t.co/X3qim2sEpC
— LakerTom (@LakerTom) March 30, 2023
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Warriors will be 1 loss ahead of us if we win tomorrow night and we have tie breaker. They have 3 tough road games and are poor on the road so there’s a chance they could lose a couple. Lakers probably need to go 6-0 or 5-1 at worst to win #6.
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