With the win last night and another game tonight the Lakers are coming up to the quarter pole in full stride and have found a solid groove. By embracing the midrange and continuing to attack the paint it’s given the shooters time to find some mojo from beyond the arc in the last 3 games. At 15-4, winners of 7 in a row and cruising through an easy part of the schedule (at least records wise), the Lakers should try to pad the record during this stretch of very winnable games. The mark of a good team means taking care of business against lesser opponents and not playing to their level of talent. The mark of a great team is doing that consistently and getting some 4th quarter rest for your star players. The Lakers are making strides in both areas.
- Luka’s overall excellence. The toned, leaner version of Luka is dominating. It’s as simple as that. Other than some missed free throws and a stretch of poor shooting from distance, there’s little to quibble about when it comes to how well Luka is playing right now. He leads the Lakers in threes (56-165, 33.9% and climbing), in defensive rebounds (Ayton has him beat 146-131 by virtue of his 47 offensive rebounds to Luka’s 13), assists, steals and triple-doubles (1). While the MVP race will likely come down to overall record it’s currently a 3 way race with Joker leading, shadowed by Shai and just behind them is Luka. It’s hard to argue against Joker’s overall dominance or Shai’s Thunder sitting atop the league with but a single loss. Luka’s just not really all that far off. Too much season to get into the weeds on this but there’s a world where, if the Lakers are 2nd in the West and LeBron doesn’t meet the 65 game threshold that voters look at Luka’s play and give him some love. We’ll see. I’m sure he’d trade an MVP for a ring, and so would I, but as long as he’s in the convo it means things are going our way more often than not.
- Reave’s looks like he did in the first couple of weeks. I was worried that LeBron’s return would dim Austin’s impact. Turns out that was a needless worry as LeBron has morphed into the perfect off-ball teammate as if he always played this way (more on that later). After sitting out with a sore groin it took Reaves a week or so to rediscover his shooting touch and he’s pushing that 3 pt. FG% up to 36.1% in a short stretch when just last week he was down at 31.1%. He’s also embraced the midrange game where he’s starting to threaten Rui’s supremacy as he’s shooting 60.1% from inside the arc (97-149). Add in the free throws he generates on drives and his improving assist to turnover ration and it’s easy to see Reaves making his first All Star team this season.
- DeAndre Ayton might be the perfect center for Luka and Reaves. I have to say, I am impressed with Ayton this season. He’s filling his role admirably, shooting an insane 71% (125-176) and, unlike Hayes (an equally impressive 74.5% (38-51, mostly dunks) his shot chart stretches out to 15-20 feet. He’s the third best scorer on the team, leading us in rebounds and blocks and has the kind of vibe you need on a team full of guys chasing history. That vibe is intense but fun. Loose but professional. Island time, baby. Ayton has had some rough patches to his career but it’s hard to be anything but excited about the foundation he, Luka and Reaves can provide for this franchise for the next 4-5 years.
- LeBron James doesn’t need the ball. The King has found yet another way to dominate the NBA. This season he’s become the ultimate off ball threat using his still impressive athletic skill and talent with his beyond elite4 hoops IQ to pick perfect moments to cut, slip, and still be the primary creator/scorer when needed. He’s dribbling the lowest amount of his entire career to get his points, he’s already helped the defense, and when Luka and Reaves rest he shows us he can still be “the man”. I’ve got nothing but admiration for the guy so very many people want to pigeonhole as a social media diva. When every little gesture, tweet or press release from your agent generates bullshit article after bullshit article, mountains of meaningless drivel and clickbait, it’s so refreshing to see that LeBron had chosen all along to simply put in the time and work. Maintenance will be the big key when it comes to James. It feels unlikely he’ll get to the requisite 65 games that would allow him to qualify for end of the season awards…but I’m not comfortable counting the man out until the benchmark has come and gone. Because with LeBron you just never know.
- Rui Hachimura. Want to talk about the secret weapon of the Los Angeles Lakers? It’s Rui Hachimura. Smooth like Jamal Wilkes, maybe too deferential but on this team I don’t see that as a negative. There are a lot of guys looking for a payday this summer, Rui is one of them. He’s leading the non-centers in both FG% (54.5%) and three point percentage (46.1%) by a country mile. He impacts winning at a high level despite a usage rate (15.9%) that’s lower than the brick laying Dalton Knecht (16.2%) and Marcus Smart (16.6%) and just north of the equally effective Jake LaRavia (15.4%). My one note for Rui would be to continue hunting his shot, backing the smaller guy into the paint and being the ultimate release valve on offense for a team that absolutely relies on that role. Rui won’t get much press, won’t win any awards, and will likely get a small raise this summer. I hope it comes from the Lakers.
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