Could Five-Out Sets Be The Culprits Behind The Lakers’ Offensive Woes?

There’s mounting evidence Darvin Ham’s decision to abandon the four-out sets that carried the team to last year’s conference finals in favor of new five-out sets is one of the major reasons behind the Lakers’ offensive woes.

Seduced by early preseason success, Darvin Ham went all-in on five-out sets despite the fact none of the players on the roster possess the consistent speed and quickness to beat their man off the dribble and get to the rim. The result is opposing teams packing the paint even more against LeBron James and Anthony Davis, making it even harder for them to get to the rim, and exposing the Lakers inability to take or make a high volume of threes.

Statistically, the Lakers currently rank dead last in 3-point percentage. They’re the only team in the entire league shooting under 30% from deep. At 3–5, their 12th in the West with the second worst offense in the NBA.
The Lakers’ disappointing 3–5 start has brought back bad memories of last season’s disastrous 2–10 start. Despite a deeper roster, injuries have been rampant. Was the new roster overrated? Is Darvin Ham the right coach?

The one major difference between how the Lakers played to get to the conference finals last year and how they’re playing right now is they’re playing 5-out sets on offense instead of last year’s 4-out w/dunker sets.

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WHY FOUR-OUT SETS ARE BETTER FIT FOR LAKERS

Four-out sets with a player in the dunker spot are a better fit for the Lakers’ current roster than five-out sets because they work best with bigger lineups and generate more rebounds, points in the paint, and made free throws.

Five-out sets and four-out sets create different kinds of spacing. Five-out sets position all five players outside the 3-point line, creating a huge void of space in the paint. Beat your man off the dribble and no rim protection.
Four-out sets, on the other hand, give the four perimeter players more space between help defenders and thus better chance to penetrate but a more crowded paint now due to player in dunker spot and his defender.

Look at the following two charts showing where players should be positioned for both a five-out set and a four-out set with a player in the dunker spot. Four-out sets are a much better fit for this Lakers roster.
Without Dennis Schroder or a younger LeBron James, the Lakers simply do not have the offensive players with the quickness and speed to beat their defenders off the dribble and get to the rim in a five-out offensive set.

The problem for a team like the Lakers is the space between help defenders is less in five-out set because five players are sharing the space above the 3-point line instead of four when they play four-out sets with a dunker.
Five-out sets are particularly bad sets for slower, shiftier guards like Russell and Reaves who like to run low pick-and-rolls and get into the paint to score and make plays for other, something harder to do on the perimeter.

Darvin Ham needs to remember why his mentor Mike Budenholzer back in January 2021 abandoned the Bucks’ five-out sets in favor of new four-out sets with the fifth player positioned on on the baseline in the dunker’s spot.
Ironically, Budenholzer’s protégé Darvin Ham finds himself in a similar situation as his mentor in 2021. Ham needs to dump the five-out sets until his team learns to shoot and instead go back to the four-out sets w/dunker.

Four-out sets with a player in the dunker spot are better fits for the Lakers because they offer opportunities for positional size advantage, improved points in the paint, made free throws, and better offensive rebounding.

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FOUR-OUT SETS OPEN DOOR FOR WOOD AND HAYES

Playing four-out sets could open up more minutes and bigger roles for the Lakers’ two backup centers Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes while helping the team improve rebounding, points in the paint, and made free throws.

So far this season, the Lakers’ small starting lineup of D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Taurean Prince, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis has lead to their offense having the worst 8-game start in the history of the NBA. With the Lakers already facing a critical game early in the season, Ham should be seriously considering ditching the five-out sets and going back to the four-out sets that helped Lakers make it to the conference finals.

To optimize four-out sets, Ham should start Wood or Hayes at the five and move Davis and James to the four and three. He should also replace Russell with Prince at the two and move Reaves to point guard in the four-out sets.
Since the non-LeBron minutes are still the Lakers biggest problem, Ham should plan to use Wood to replace James in a two-bigs lineup with Davis. Wood outside and Davis in the dunker spot could win non-LeBron minutes.

Hopefully, the dismaying loss to the Rockets has awakened Darvin Ham to the fact that running five-out sets is what’s behind the Lakers’ offensive woes and reverting to last season’s four-out w/dunker sets is the solution.