LeBron & Luka Lead LA to Top-4 NBA & Top-2 West Power Ranking

LeBron and Luka have helped catapult the Lakers into the top 5 👀

Read @johnschuhmann's full NBA App Power Rankings below!

📰: https://t.co/xBnQhM5YGI pic.twitter.com/K5vSFQvYhW

— NBA (@NBA) February 24, 2025

#4 Los Angeles Lakers
Last Week:7↑
Record: 34-21

OffRtg: 114.3 (10) DefRtg: 113.1 (13) NetRtg: +1.2 (12) Pace: 98.7 (22)

The Lakers are 2-2 with Luka Dončić, who, after some early struggles, busted out with a huge performance in a big win in Denver on Saturday.

Three takeaways

Dončić’s third game as a Laker was pretty brutal. He had six turnovers (including three in the first four possessions) and shot just 5-for-18 as L.A. lost to the Hornets on Wednesday. But, after missing their win in Portland the following night, he returned over the weekend and helped the Lakers beat the team (the Nuggets) to whom they had lost 13 of their previous 14 meetings. Denver typically beats teams in the paint, but Saturday came with the Nuggets’ worst paint differential (52-30) of the season, thanks mostly to the Lakers’ ability to defend and get out in transition.

Though they dominated inside on Saturday, the Lakers have seen a huge jump in 3-point rate with Dončić on board. They’ve taken more than 45% of their shots from 3-point range in all four games he’s played, having done so in just 11 of their other 51. They’re 0-5 when they’ve taken more than half of their shots from beyond the arc.

The Lakers have still played just 13 games within the top eight teams in the West, with the other seven teams having all played at least 17. They were 3-8 within the top eight through January, with the three wins (all at home) by a total of just 18 points. But they’re 2-0 this month, with both wins coming on the road and by more than 20.

The Lakers’ win in Denver on Saturday was the start of five straight games within the top eight. Next is Dončić’s first game against the Mavs, and it will be a big week beyond that.

Week 19: vs. DAL, vs. MIN, vs. LAC, vs. LAC