5 THINGS

The Lakers did what was needed to control their destiny and end up as the 3rd seed. They have a date with the 6th seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. It’s safe to say that there won’t be any easy roads to a title, especially in the loaded western conference, but facing the Timberwolves early is probably for the best. I’d rather face a young team early, before they maybe win a series or two and start playing above their heads. Defense and an efficient offense are the keys to winning in the playoffs so let’s get into it.

1. Healthy get you wealthy. The week off for a team featuring the oldest player in the league (whom we rely on extensively) is a boon from the basketball gods. LeBron, Reaves, Luka, Hayes, DFS, Rui and Vando have all missed games for maintenance over the last month and getting those players off their feet and into some treatment is huge. Especially LeBron and Luka but anyone who can maybe get over a nagging injury or a persistent bruise. Hayes in particular could stand to get over the finger injury he has which is why I suspect his free throw % has dropped off a cliff of late. Getting as many guys as right as possible is a gift the Lakers have not had in some time.
2. Time for planning. Being that it’s Coach Reddick’s maiden voyage into the playoffs it will be interesting to see how he plays the matchups, adjustments and counter-moves that often define a playoff series. Coaching takes on a new dimension in the playoffs and I’m excited to see what the coach and his staff come up with. Having not one but two generational talents to run the offense, call out coverages and slow the game down for the whole team is a luxury most coaches can only dream of. Matching up against the Timberwolves is a great first test.
3. Luke, LeBron and Reaves. Let’s not get anything twisted: we’re going exactly as far as these three players can carry us. We need for the hot shooting Luka showed the last few games to continue, we need LeBron to continue to captain the defense at an elite level, and we need Reaves to continue to assert himself and be the best 3rd option in the NBA. If these three guys are all rolling pretty consistently I like our chances against anyone.
4. X Factors. I’d say the health and impact of Mike Conley on the Timberwolves along with how Randle plays are probably the 2 biggest X Factors for the Timberwolves. For the Lakers it’s their bench. Who among Vincent, DFS, Vando, Knecht and maybe Goodwin can step up and deliver under the bright lights of the NBA playoffs? My bet is that Vincent ends up being a stabilizing force, for the most part, and that the true X Factors end up being Vando and Goodwin. If those two can combine for 10+ points and the stat stuffing they do on D we’re in good shape. I’m not expecting a huge role for Dalton, honestly. Who knows, all sorts of weird can happen in a 7 game series. Just ask Lonnie Walker IV.
5. Defense shall lead the way. The old adage proves true every postseason: defense wins championships. If the lakers can rediscover that elite, defenders on a string vibe we had post-Luka trade but pre-LeBron groin tweak I like our chances against anyone in either conference. Slip much below that and the cracks in the foundation will be showing and we’re going to be in for a tough slog. So here’s hoping we defend at an elite level and score effectively and efficiently en route to banner #18!

Fresh off a 4 game road trip in which they lost every game and then back home into a back-to-back it would have been easy to forgive the Lakers for losing what can only be described as a trap game. No meaningful stars healthy on the Spurs (sorry CP3), 4 games in 5 days (including travel from the Mile High City) and nearly a whole rotation’s worth of injured players the Lakers could have been forgiven for penciling in the loss and laying an egg. They did not. They took care of business like a team intent on competing for a banner would do. They set about taking care of business.

1. Lakers won even though Luka couldn’t throw it in the ocean. He scored a couple baskets early and a couple baskets late but in between was an ocean of basketball that Luka couldn’t throw the ball into. Still, he played tremendous defense (3 steals and a block), greased the offensive wheels (14 assists), and rebounded well enough to come up one short of a triple-double (you guessed it…9). I’m pretty sure the Slovenian Sensation would have loved to have shot better but will take the win. Every. Single. Time. Luka’s gravity is an offense creating machine unto itself so just having him on the floor helped others score buckets to bolster the superstar.
2. Reaves is a legit star now. Nigh untouchable has been the front office credo and we’re all seeing why on a nightly basis. His ability to get into the seems and cause havoc and easy buckets or score his own is looking better and better every season. His defense has improved and his handle has become pretty lethal. Reaves slots in well with all of our line ups, big and small, and continues to have a high impact even when playing with Luka and LeBron. When one sits, Reaves amps it up appropriately. Those are incredible skillsets that aren’t really teachable. he really has an elite feel and IQ for the game and his physical gifts and skills are just catching up to that now. Next season, with a whole summer and camp? Watch out.
3. Jordan Goodwin needs a standard contract…stat. No offense to either Alex Len or Cam Reddish buuuuuuut…one of you fellers has got to go. My vote is Len but I think that, based on current roster construction, it will be Cam which is unfortunate because he won’t be eligible to join a playoff roster now. Still, we’re gonna need Goodwin in the playoffs and it’s hard to see us letting he and Hayes slip away this summer. Retaining at least one of them should be a top priority for the team and, if LeBron chooses to play next season, I could see him offering to take a very, very slight pay cut to get that done (he offered as much this season but not much came of it). Goodwin is the guard version of Vando, maybe a little less “dawg” in him as Vando is quick to step up for his teammates (he also is signed here for the next 3 seasons so he feels safe, as well). Goodwin is scrappy, energetic and an excellent defender. He’s making his shots right now which is gravy on this team and has allowed us to better withstand these late season injuries. Needs to be on the playoff roster, no other way to put it.
4. Dorian Finney-Smith. I don’t say enough about this dude and it’s high time that changed. When DFS is out, the defense takes a huge step backwards. When DFS is hitting his shots, the offense becomes even more un-guardable. He, along with Goodwin, Vando and Vincent, is one of our best defenders and is excellent at calling out coverages and screens. He’s strong, long and fast. lakers Fans have heard of these fabled “three and D” players but DFS is the first one to truly fit the bill and earn the name in purple and gold other than Hachimura.
5. Home cooking. The Lakers need to keep pushing and try and get the best possible home court advantage. They play really well at Crypto this season (27-7), they shoot more free throws at home (24.5 vs. 21.8 on the road) and who doesn’t like downtown LA to be rocking after a win? In an odd twist to this logic, Luka shoots better on the road than at home (47.6% on the road vs. 41% at home) but I stand by my assertion. The rest of the Lakers play better and we need those FTA’s. The team, overall, has a pretty mild discrepancy between home and road FG% splits (48.5% at home vs. 47.1% on the road). Free throws will matter.

Any win is a good win, sure the Suns are imploding and going full super nova but the Lakers will take any W they can get while the squad gets healthy. We got to about 85% strength with the return of DFS, Hayes, and Luka and we needed all three to play well and come up clutch against one of the more surprising plotlines this season. The black hole that is the Phoenix Suns

1. Luka. In a word: amazing. Like LeBron, Kobe and Magic before him, he will make some turnovers that are…shall we say avoidable. He will complain a bit much and we’ll see what his conditioning is like next season. It’s all worth it. The dude does legendary things nightly and he makes them look simple. Started hot, finished kind of cold, he was superb at luring the Phoenix defenders into fouling him on his jump shots and drives. Finishing 2 dimes shy of a triple-double it’s easier and easier to accept that Luka is a Laker.
2. Dorian Finney-Smith. Dude is solid as a rock and you can see why Luka enjoys playing with him. His defense is on point and he makes the right play just about every time. DFS, Rui, Vincent and Vando are the quartet of defenders/role-players that have the potential to make this Lakers team something really special. Between these 4 we have a multi-headed hydra of defenders that can switch, recover and rebound with tenacity. Of them all DFS is probably the most essential followed closely by Gabe and Rui. That 3 he hit late to stymie the last Phoenix gasp was clutch because, up to that shot, he was only 1-5 from three and was obviously searching for a groove on offense.
3. Hayes expanding his game. I like when a player bucks trends. It’s one reason I really dig Vanderbilt, there’s not really one thing about his game that screams “modern NBA!” Jaxson Hayes has, at times, been slotted below project players like Christian Koloko on the Lakers depth chart. Last season he came on strong late and then seemed to regress over the summer and came out tentative. Maybe it’s the space Luka helps create, especially when he shares the floor with Reaves and/or LeBron, but Jaxson Hayes suddenly has an acre of space to operate in. He took his man off the dribble…from the three point line…and dunked on him. He’s finding the seams for easy lobs and he keeps flirting with the 20 point barrier. While not the bruising center Coach Reddick pined for early on, the fit with this team is becoming undeniable as Hayes finds ways to leverage his superior speed and hops against more plodding defenders. In the NBA speed kills and is harder than any other physical trait to stop. Footwork and IQ can overcome both speed and strength but, for now, the opposition is having a difficult time containing Hayes. Playoffs will be another beast but this version of Jax is lethal in the regular season.
4. Reaves is becoming Mr. Dependable. Good for 20 and 9, every time. Toss in some boards, some defense and you’ve got the combo guard of the future, folks. reaves “do-it-all” tool box has been on full display for most of the season and were it not for resurgent Detroit Pistons thanks to Cade Cunningham, Austin Reaves would be the clear favorite for Most Improved Player. As it is, if the lakers can crack the top 3, maybe 4 in the west, he still has an outside shot at it. Reaves getting to the line a little more consistently would be nice but that’s on the refs as much as on him as he certainly is attacking the basket.
5. Help is on the way. Sounds like Rui could be available before the end of the week and LeBron not far behind. Welcome news to Lakers fans!

It’s not always 12 point cruises and bench warmers playing the last few minutes, sometimes you gotta win nasty. The Lakers showed that nasty tenacity last night in a thrilling 113-109 OT vs. the Knicks. File this one under “Ain’t Pretty” because this was an ugly game start to finish. More like a street brawl than a basketball game at times, you could tell the Knicks wanted this game and they let it slip away (a habit for them to deal with). Lot of bright points in the murk and muck so let’s dig in.

1. Reaves Rusty Return. It was great seeing Reaves back on the floor but he struggled mightily from the field. Still, it’s worth noting how he helps bend the defense when he plays with LBJ and LD. This aspect of the Lakers, three guys who can get to the rim and create in addition to hitting the three, is what will differentiate the Lakers from the rest of the Association. The Warriors are the only other team that comes close with Curry, Butler and Green and Curry is the one with the least court vision in that trio (like Reaves on ours). Other teams feature a possibly more elite shot creator (Denver has Jokic, OKC has SGA) but the multi-headed Hydra that is the Lakers is a tough foe to vanquish, even when one of them is missing shots they normally make. That three he hit in OT was as clutch as it gets.
2. Gotta keep Jaxson Hayes. There might not be a better center within our means this summer. I’m sure we’ll see 8,231,609 articles about Myles Turner, Brook Lopez and Clint Capella. From my point of view there might not be a better fit for Luka than what we already have in-house. Should he decline his player option for next season Naz Reed is certainly going to vault to the top of the list but his services, like Turner’s, are likely to come at a price too steep. We don’t have $30 million to toss at the 5 position. If we can’t work a trade for Kleber we won’t even have $10 million we can throw at the 5, not for a player on another team. We can sign Hayes, possibly for the Bi-Annual Exception. His fit is apparent and he’s blossoming into a solid player before our eyes. We’ve made the mistake of chasing names over impact and fit too many times in the past, here’s hoping we’ve learned from those lessons. Hayes played so well the Lakers couldn’t afford to go small down the stretch and that’s saying something.
3. Knecht. That buzzer-beater he hit at the end of the 3rd reminded me of an earlier game this season (don’t recall which one, like in the first 10 games…) and it was great to see a young player who has faced a lot of adversity already find the space and ability within to take and make a game-altering shot. He’s been looking more like his early season self and I couldn’t be happier that we didn’t trade him for a broken down center we never needed in the first place. No offense to Mark Williams intended, just his fit given that we already have Hayes was curious to me from the get-go.
4. L & L inc. I’m just now getting used to seeing LeBron and Luka on the same team. It’s been a blast and they kept us afloat through 3 quarters. Credit them for rowing the boat but also for trusting their team down the stretch when one could easily imagine them thinking “it has to be me”. That kind of thinking isolates and divides a team, they’re embracing theirs and the results show up in the in/loss column.
5. Great test coming up. We’re going to start facing teams that have a different set of players than what we’ve been beating up on. We’ve feasted, as any good team does, on an easier portion of the schedule and now we go back on the road. So here’s hoping the Lakers continue to commit and execute on D, keep trusting one another and keep playing hard. It’s the only true cheat code in sport, after all.