Lakers Are Now 2nd Seed In The West

[OGSactownballer]

Any of the five potential first round matchups for this Lakers team will very likely take them out in the first round.

They have ZERO inside presence whereas everyone of those teams (except Dallas who may drop out of the race at any time) has dominant inside players who will control the glass in playoff paced games.

[KyRo23]

Any of the five potential first round matchups for this Lakers team will very likely take them out in the first round.

They have ZERO inside presence whereas everyone of those teams (except Dallas who may drop out of the race at any time) has dominant inside players who will control the glass in playoff paced games.

Which teams are you talking about "likely" is a strong word

Mavs, Kings, Wolves, Warriors, Clippers seem to be who you might be talking about. Saying "likely" seems highly opinionated and flat out wrong

[Scalabrine]

They may wanna avoid the Warriors.

I am sure the warriors will finish in the top 6 at least....

Unless theres a major collapse from one of the Lakers, Rockets, Grizzlies, Nuggets, I really doubt they get any higher than 6. There are 20ish games left and they 5 games back from the 5th seed Rockets.

If the Rockets go 11-11, the Warriors would have to go 17-5 to pass them. It's just not realistic.

[Ambrose]

Any of the five potential first round matchups for this Lakers team will very likely take them out in the first round.

They have ZERO inside presence whereas everyone of those teams (except Dallas who may drop out of the race at any time) has dominant inside players who will control the glass in playoff paced games.

Which teams are you talking about "likely" is a strong word

Mavs, Kings, Wolves, Warriors, Clippers seem to be who you might be talking about. Saying "likely" seems highly opinionated and flat out wrong

Even as someone who is cautious to anoint LAL as contenders, they'd absolutely love to play LAC or SAC in round 1. GS doesn't have anything close to a dominant inside player. You'd basically only be weary of Dallas if they can get healthy or MN if they can get their **** together.

[DirtyDez]

Lakers vs Dallas at full health is a 7-game series. OKC beats LA in 5. Their frontcourt is so superior to the Lakers.

[Moose]

After they beat the Knicks on Thursday that would be moot anyway since they're a better team than the Knicks.

Aww, you're so cute when you get all worked up about how good the Knicks have become

So good that they aren't even a top 4 contender.

Celtics, Thunder, Cavs, Lakers. Oof.

Best season in Knicks recent history though right?

I don't understand your point.

Even if the Lakers are better, which they probably aren't, they are still a top 5-7 team in the league?

That's pretty great.

[zimpy27]

Luka getting credit for a group project he hadn't showed up to until today

Agree with this sentiment, and it's certainly true of the defense. I think on offense though, even when Luka wasn't putting up nice numbers, getting Lebron off the ball and operating more a cutter completely changed this offense. Lebron can't break down a defense off the dribble anymore, but he's still a genius + a great athlete if he has a head start. Lebron as a secondary playmaker operating off cuts has been game breaking. Lebron has been playing more off-ball for years, but it doesn't exactly hit when the ball is in the hands of D'Lo, AR, or AD. Now the ball is in the hands of playmaker that is arguably better than even prime Lebron at this skill.

Defensively though, the DFS trade and getting Vando back has been the group project that really laid the foundation for the Lakers success.

Yeah I spent the season wanting a 3rd playmaker who could defend in exchange for DLo. Lakers had LeBron and Reaves only once DLo went for DFS.

Lakers offense looked better with DLo than it does with Luka so far but that's probably more to do with Davis still being here as an excellent efficient scorer.



But honestly the defense is witchcraft, I don't fully understand how this works so well recently. I still think it must be small sample size. Because the lineup that is doing the best is the starting lineup and Vando/DFS aren't in it. It's: Reaves, Doncic, LeBron, Rui, Hayes

[C3H6N6O6]

They may wanna avoid the Warriors.

I am sure the warriors will finish in the top 6 at least....

Unless theres a major collapse from one of the Lakers, Rockets, Grizzlies, Nuggets, I really doubt they get any higher than 6. There are 20ish games left and they 5 games back from the 5th seed Rockets.

If the Rockets go 11-11, the Warriors would have to go 17-5 to pass them. It's just not realistic.

Warriors have to leapfrog the Clippers and not the Rockets to be top 6.
Rockets have a pretty easy schedule otherwise I'd have put my money on Warriors overtaking them and getting the 5th seed.

[C3H6N6O6]

I don't think Lakers will remain the 2nd seed because they have a brutal remaining schedule. Their remaining SOS is 3rd hardest but they have a bunch of back to backs which makes their remaining schedule the hardest imo.

[Michael Lucky]

Luka getting credit for a group project he hadn't showed up to until today

Agree with this sentiment, and it's certainly true of the defense. I think on offense though, even when Luka wasn't putting up nice numbers, getting Lebron off the ball and operating more a cutter completely changed this offense. Lebron can't break down a defense off the dribble anymore, but he's still a genius + a great athlete if he has a head start. Lebron as a secondary playmaker operating off cuts has been game breaking. Lebron has been playing more off-ball for years, but it doesn't exactly hit when the ball is in the hands of D'Lo, AR, or AD. Now the ball is in the hands of playmaker that is arguably better than even prime Lebron at this skill.

Defensively though, the DFS trade and getting Vando back has been the group project that really laid the foundation for the Lakers success.

Yeah I spent the season wanting a 3rd playmaker who could defend in exchange for DLo. Lakers had LeBron and Reaves only once DLo went for DFS.

Lakers offense looked better with DLo than it does with Luka so far but that's probably more to do with Davis still being here as an excellent efficient scorer.



But honestly the defense is witchcraft, I don't fully understand how this works so well recently. I still think it must be small sample size. Because the lineup that is doing the best is the starting lineup and Vando/DFS aren't in it. It's: Reaves, Doncic, LeBron, Rui, Hayes

Length might be an issue for guards getting into the lane. Smallest starting player is 6 foot 5. They are really disrupting passing lanes well. And even if Luka isn't the greatest he's got good instincts just from. See where the play is developing.

[Michael Lucky]

I don't think Lakers will remain the 2nd seed because they have a brutal remaining schedule. Their remaining SOS is 3rd hardest but they have a bunch of back to backs which makes their remaining schedule the hardest imo.

Yeah but I will suspect Luka will be shooting much better as well. Lakers are still winning every game without him getting into a groove yet. Rui and Reaves should be back soon as well for those matchups.

[California Gold]

Aww, you're so cute when you get all worked up about how good the Knicks have become

So good that they aren't even a top 4 contender.

Celtics, Thunder, Cavs, Lakers. Oof.

Best season in Knicks recent history though right?

I don't understand your point.

Even if the Lakers are better, which they probably aren't, they are still a top 5-7 team in the league?

That's pretty great.

My point was that the Lakers are better than the Knicks. It's pretty simple actually. Mr Grouch came into the thread to spread his insecurity about the Knicks and I was just putting him in his place. That's all done now.

[C3H6N6O6]

I don't think Lakers will remain the 2nd seed because they have a brutal remaining schedule. Their remaining SOS is 3rd hardest but they have a bunch of back to backs which makes their remaining schedule the hardest imo.

Yeah but I will suspect Luka will be shooting much better as well. Lakers are still winning every game without him getting into a groove yet. Rui and Reaves should be back soon as well for those matchups.

I think Lakers might rest Luka or LeBron for one of the games of a back to back.
I think Lakers just want to be top 4 seed and don't care about the 2nd seed so much that they would risk LeBron being fatigued in the playoffs.

[Andri]

Austin Reaves's presence will be crucial for the Lakers' success.

As we saw in the last game, teams were able to trap Luka without him on the court. Outside of Lebron, the Lakers lack consistent playmakers in postseason situations. AR provides a necessary third ball-handling option, similar to the role Dinwiddie or Exum played in Dallas.

Additionally, Hayes's improved performance is expected when playing as a rolling center with Luka. Both he and LJ will elevate the play of any center they share the court with. However, Hayes's offensive capabilities are still far from those of Gafford or Lively. This was evident in some out-of-sync alley-oop attempts that resulted in turnovers and his struggles catching the ball during pick-and-rolls.

On the bright side, the defense is functioning well. However, I am concerned about the team's ability to consistently generate offense and the potential need to rely heavily on Luka's (and to some extent, Lebron's) individual efforts to create scoring opportunities on a possession-by-possession basis.

[Andri]

Austin Reaves's presence will be crucial for the Lakers' success.

As we saw in the last game, teams were able to trap Luka without him on the court. Outside of Lebron, the Lakers lack consistent playmakers in postseason situations. AR provides a necessary third ball-handling option, similar to the role needed from Dinwiddie or Exum in Dallas.

Additionally, Hayes's improved performance is expected when playing as a rolling center with Luka. Both he and LJ will elevate the play of any center they share the court with. However, Hayes's offensive capabilities are still far from those of Gafford or Lively. This was evident in some out-of-sync alley-oop attempts that resulted in turnovers and his struggles catching the ball during pick-and-rolls.

On the bright side, the defense is functioning well. However, I am concerned about the team's ability to consistently generate offense and the potential need to rely heavily on Luka's (and to some extent, Lebron's) individual efforts to create scoring opportunities on a possession-by-possession basis.

[Bob8]

Austin Reaves's presence will be crucial for the Lakers' success.

As we saw in the last game, teams were able to trap Luka without him on the court. Outside of Lebron, the Lakers lack consistent playmakers in postseason situations. AR provides a necessary third ball-handling option, similar to the role Dinwiddie or Exum played in Dallas.

Additionally, Hayes's improved performance is expected when playing as a rolling center with Luka. Both he and LJ will elevate the play of any center they share the court with. However, Hayes's offensive capabilities are still far from those of Gafford or Lively. This was evident in some out-of-sync alley-oop attempts that resulted in turnovers and his struggles catching the ball during pick-and-rolls.

On the bright side, the defense is functioning well. However, I am concerned about the team's ability to consistently generate offense and the potential need to rely heavily on Luka's (and to some extent, Lebron's) individual efforts to create scoring opportunities on a possession-by-possession basis.

You shouldn't be concerned. Luka is the best, when 100%, with generating offense. That's why his numbers are up in playoffs, where pace falls and teams are playing half court offense mostly. You should look at Mavs 22 roster that Luka brought in WCF. Lakers are far better team than Mavs were in 22.

[Andri]

Austin Reaves's presence will be crucial for the Lakers' success.

As we saw in the last game, teams were able to trap Luka without him on the court. Outside of Lebron, the Lakers lack consistent playmakers in postseason situations. AR provides a necessary third ball-handling option, similar to the role Dinwiddie or Exum played in Dallas.

Additionally, Hayes's improved performance is expected when playing as a rolling center with Luka. Both he and LJ will elevate the play of any center they share the court with. However, Hayes's offensive capabilities are still far from those of Gafford or Lively. This was evident in some out-of-sync alley-oop attempts that resulted in turnovers and his struggles catching the ball during pick-and-rolls.

On the bright side, the defense is functioning well. However, I am concerned about the team's ability to consistently generate offense and the potential need to rely heavily on Luka's (and to some extent, Lebron's) individual efforts to create scoring opportunities on a possession-by-possession basis.

You shouldn't be concerned. Luka is the best, when 100%, with generating offense. That's why his numbers are up in playoffs, where pace falls and teams are playing half court offense mostly. You should look at Mavs 22 roster that Luka brought in WCF. Lakers are far better team than Mavs were in 22.

I am not personally concerned, not really a Lakers fan

Although the current Lakers team is undoubtedly stronger than the 2022 Mavericks, I believe the overall competition is tougher this year. Additionally, my comments are more about highlighting potential risks to manage expectations and future roster decisions. I'm also drawing from the Mavericks' previous experiences in similar situations.

Again, my takes

[cgf]

Hope this is just a random, totally useless information - for which it's excellent -, and you are not suggesting that the East is stronger.

Not suggesting anything, just pointing out how weak the top of the west is behind OKC and that it doesn’t have as many elite teams as the east

So that is indeed, what you partly suggesting. If you are saying that the top of the West after OKC is weak, you really are saying that East is better. I have a suggestion to you though. Maybe, just maybe, if a team plays more games against stronger, better competition, as a result, they might win lower number of games.

Ish, I don't like using weaker or stronger when I'm being serious because those are both so vague. I prefer specifying weaker/stronger at the top or weaker/stronger depth...as those are two completely different conversations. I think the West is (obviously) deeper with tier 2 & tier 3 teams...just look at the play-in records or tankathon...but the east has become stronger at the top.

Two of the three tier 1 teams this season are in the east, and I think my Knicks are at the head of tier 2 because of the way we've bossed teams outside of that top 3. We are just 9-10 vs the top 5 in each conference, but 9-3 without those 7 losses to OKC, CLE, & BOS...including some absolute gobsmackings of Denver, Memphis, Milwaukee, and Indiana.


I get the logic behind the "inflated wins" argument & on the whole math is math, but if you dig into the top teams #s vs each conference & other playoff teams, you'll see it's not always that simple. The Lakers, for example, have a better record against the west than the east, so would have fewer wins if they were in the "weaker" conference and their win rates stayed the same*.

My Knicks record IS better against the east than the west, but it's only by 1 game, if we hadn't dropped that matinee to Utah in November our win-rate would be identical against both conference. If you focus on how we've done against other playoff teams; we are 5-4 against the west's top 6 and just 5-8 vs the east's. So I don't think any win inflation outweighs the h2hs; where we are 5-2 against the non OKC-playoff teams in the west and just 5-3 against the non-BOS-or-CLE-playoff teams in the east.

...and I don't think the Knicks are the 4th best team in the NBA because of our record, anyway, it's nice hitting that 40-20 mark after our slow start, but it's our H2H showings versus other tier 2 teams that have made this such an enjoyable season, despite not having our defensive anchor until this past weekend or the tier 1 teams just dismantling us half the time and us just running out of gas in the 4th from trying to keep up, the other half.


*which is a factor that we don't know how to account for. Teams just try harder against teams they are directly competing against than they do against other teams because a loss to a direct opponent isn't just a -1 for your record, it's a +1 to someone who might pass you in the standings.

Plus playing each other more often leads to more competitiveness & chances for bad blood to make the players care extra about specific matchups during the overly long regular season.

[cgf]

So good that they aren't even a top 4 contender.

Celtics, Thunder, Cavs, Lakers. Oof.

Best season in Knicks recent history though right?

I don't understand your point.

Even if the Lakers are better, which they probably aren't, they are still a top 5-7 team in the league?

That's pretty great.

My point was that the Lakers are better than the Knicks. It's pretty simple actually. Mr Grouch came into the thread to spread his insecurity about the Knicks and I was just putting him in his place. That's all done now.

It's hard not to laugh about you still being so wound up about this. "Putting him in his place" are you 12?

[tamaraw08]

Luka getting credit for a group project he hadn't showed up to until today

Agree with this sentiment, and it's certainly true of the defense. I think on offense though, even when Luka wasn't putting up nice numbers, getting Lebron off the ball and operating more a cutter completely changed this offense. Lebron can't break down a defense off the dribble anymore, but he's still a genius + a great athlete if he has a head start. Lebron as a secondary playmaker operating off cuts has been game breaking. Lebron has been playing more off-ball for years, but it doesn't exactly hit when the ball is in the hands of D'Lo, AR, or AD. Now the ball is in the hands of playmaker that is arguably better than even prime Lebron at this skill.

Defensively though, the DFS trade and getting Vando back has been the group project that really laid the foundation for the Lakers success.

Yeah I spent the season wanting a 3rd playmaker who could defend in exchange for DLo. Lakers had LeBron and Reaves only once DLo went for DFS.

Lakers offense looked better with DLo than it does with Luka so far but that's probably more to do with Davis still being here as an excellent efficient scorer.



But honestly the defense is witchcraft, I don't fully understand how this works so well recently. I still think it must be small sample size. Because the lineup that is doing the best is the starting lineup and Vando/DFS aren't in it. It's: Reaves, Doncic, LeBron, Rui, Hayes

Getting rid of DLo and his bad defense and acquiring DFS is a major upgrade IMO.
Also sometime after the massacre in Miami and Atlanta, JJ had this "talk" with Lebron about his defense and with better health, James just activated his version of Draemond Green/Pippen defensive mode, actually closing down on shooters, rotating properly and chasing down layups etc.
I believe they allowed less than 111pts/game like 70% of their last 35+ games.