As we get ready to for Game 2 in the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets, one of the big questions to consider is who has been the Lakers’ third most valuable player so far in the NBA bubble playoffs?
After staying with essentially the same starting lineup most of the season, Lakers’ head coach Frank Vogel has made several major adjustments both to the starting lineups as well as his rotations since we started the playoffs. Before the playoffs, the talk was about the Lakers needing Kyle Kuzma to step up and be the team’s third star to be win a championship but now other players like Rajon Rondo and Dwight Howard have started to emerge.
It’s easy to say the Lakers’ third star is the open man or their elite defense but history tells us the team is more likely to need a key role player to emerge as the third most valuable player to win the NBA championship. Will that be a current starter like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope or Danny Green or a key reserve like Kyle Kuzma, Rajon Rondo, or Dwight Howard. At the halfway point, we’re starting to see who could be legitimate candidates.
To help you analyze those candidates, let’s look at how individual Lakers ranked according to the following key playoff player stats per NBA.com:
Net Rating, Plus/Minus, Points, Assists, Rebounds, Blocks, and Steals.
Net Rating Per Game
One of the key stats used to compare a player’s overall performance is Net Rating because it measures the difference between the player’s offensive and defensive rating. Danny Green’s net rating is best on the team and tops LeBron James and Anthony Davis, which makes him a serious candidate.
Plus/Minus Per Game
Plus/Minus is another stat analysts like to use to compare players as it measures how the team does when a player is on the floor and includes intangibles such as fit, chemistry, and things that don’t show up on the stat sheet. Danny Green’s third best plus/minus adds to his candidacy.
Points Per Game
There’s a case to be made that points per game is the best stat by which to measure who is the Lakers’ third most valuable playoff player. The Lakers do need a third consistent scorer to complement LeBron and AD. Kyle Kuzma being the team’s third best scorer makes him a top candidate.
Assists Per Game
Next to scoring, a second playmaker to play alongside and free up LeBron James from being the Lakers’ only facilitator and to run the offense when he rests is always near the top of the list of Lakers’ needs. Rajon Rondo’s elite playmaking, though only in three games, catapults him into contention.
Rebounds Per Game
As expected, LeBron James and Anthony Davis are the Lakers’ best two rebounders. Controlling the boards has always been a critical factor both aton the defensive and offensive glass for teams to win in the playoffs. Dwight Howard’s elite rebounding makes him a legitimate candidate.
Blocks Per Game
There’s truth in the axiom ‘defense wins championships’ and Frank Vogel’s defensive philosophy has always been defense starts inside-out with rim protection. The surprise is Dwight Howard not making the list but JaVale McGee should be added as a candidate because of his shot blocking.
Steals Per Game
Steals are often an underappreciated defensive stat but impact the team’s offense because they often lead to easy transition points on the offensive end. Rajon Rondo’s 2 steals per game in limited games and minutes should add to his candidacy as the Laker’s third most valuable playoff player.
Summary of Rankings
Here’s a recap of where each Lakers player finished as far as the playoff top five rankings for the seven statistical categories discussed above:
Obviously, the Lakers’ third most valuable playoff player should contribute in multiple areas like LeBron James and Anthony Davis have done. Per that criteria, the leading candidates so far are Rajon Rondo and Danny Green. We’re slightly past what hopefully is the halfway point in the Lakers’ quest to win the championship, so a lot can change as competition and pressure ramps up as we finish the Conference Finals and then the NBA Finals.
We’ll continue to track who’s performing as the team’s third most valuable player as the Lakers pursue the franchise’s 17th NBA championship and follow up at the end of the playoffs with a final article and award.
Most of the time, I find the stats confirm the eye test. In writing this article, I expected Rajon Rondo to emerge as the leading candidate at the halfway point to the championship to be the Lakers’ leading candidate for third most valuable player on the team and that was true. What I didn’t expect was for Danny Green to be right there with Rondo as a legitimate candidate.
It’s an easy read despite the length as I display charts showing the top five Lakers players in each of seven different statistical categories that I believe are excellent measures of the players’ contributions to the team’s success as well as a summary chart that shows where each player ranked for those categories.
Hope you enjoy. I will be following up with an article and award at the end of the playoffs for the Lakers’ player who was the third most valuable player for the Lakers in the playoffs. Please read and comment. Thank you.
I’d say our defense is the 3rd most but in terms of getting LeBron some off ball rest, easy buckets and leadership Rondo edges Dwight.
What’s interesting is, as impressive as Rondo and Dwight have been so far in the playoffs, the sample size is small. Rondo has only played in three games and Dwight was only resurrected after multiple DNPs against the Rockets.
Right now, I would have to agree Rondo has been the team’s third playoff MVP but we’re just starting the second half of the championship quest so there’s plenty of opportunity for Danny Green, Markieff Morris, and Dwight Howard to make their cases. Or even KCP or Alex, which is great for the Lakers.
Right now, looks like we could see a starting lineup of LeBron, AD, Green, KCP, and Dwight going forward with Rondo, Kuzma, Morris, Caruso, and occasional THT off the bench. That’s a rotation with all 10 players playing well right now, which is why we’re winning.
I feel for JaVale. I could see Frank starting him again to see how he could do but I don’t think that makes sense. Tough to handle but JaVale is up to it. Just raises issues for next season. If Dwight starts and excels and the Lakers win, we might have to spend our MLE to keep him. That would likely mean McGee would join the Lakers trade package along with Kuzma and Green.
I think McGee gets another start. At least one but I also won’t be blown away if Dwight gets the nod and we go smaller a little more often. Right now we played 21 out of 48 minutes of small ball, that includes the garbage time minutes for JVMG. I could see that getting as high as 30-33 mpg. Like Stu Lantz says: let success be your guide.
As for defense being our third star, I think it’s this team’s identity and permeates everything we do as a team. And truthfully, a team’s identity is more important than a third star. Saying defense is our third star underappreciated and demeans how important it is to our success as a team. It’s our IDENTITY! Who we are!
Now the open man, that’s a better option if we can’t specify one player as the third star. That’s more of a game to game situation. For a stretch like the playoffs, where we have to win 16 games, I think we do need at least one and maybe two role players to step up and become the consistent difference makers. Right now, my bet’s on Rondo and Howard being those two players… with a little help from the ‘open man.’
lol, Frank Vogel was the one who said defense is our 3rd superstar dude. Fire the coach!!!! Just kidding. I don’t think it “demeans” a single thing. It’s showing it respect. Frank referred to the open man as being our best scoring option after LeBron. One way or another, nothing original about this convo. We’re just rehashing what the coach already said.
Defense: https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/news/lakers-defense-superstar-frank-vogel/1qfntmi6xu7f31eh8iswfkp2k1
Open Man: https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-frank-vogel-discloses-who-will-serve-3rd-option/
LMAO. Of course it was Frank who said the third man was the open shooter and our defense. That’s why I used them. They were his attempts to deflect from the reality that no Laker had stepped up to be the team’s third star. SMH.
By committee