The Sunday and Tuesday mini-series in OKC between the superstar-driven Lakers and the deep young juggernaut Thunder promises to be a live sneak preview of a possible Western Conference Finals between the two teams.
With just five games left in the regular season, the Lakers face a daunting trial by fire that could catapult them up to #2 seed in the West if they win out or see them plummet into the Play-In if the lose 4 or 5 of the games. That 3 of their remaining 5 games include 2 road games against the #1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder and a home game against the #2 seed Houston Rockets only make the Lakers’ remaining games even more challenging.
Sunday afternoon’s first game of the mini-series should give us a first indication how the LeBron James and Luka Doncic led Lakers matchup with the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen William driven Thunder.
Statistically, the Thunder are a different tier of NBA teams than the Lakers. While the L.A. has had the #13 ranked offense and defense since trading for Luka Doncic on February 1, OKC had the #1 offense and defense.
Fortunately for L.A., the game is not played on paper and the Lakers and LeBron James have the firsthand experience and confidence you only get from actually winning championships, which the Thunder still do not.
The mini-series in OKC should be the two biggest games of the year for both teams and a fascinating sneak preview of what we might see if the Lakers and Thunder end up meeting in the Western Conference Finals.
So let’s review the Lakers-Thunder matchup, what each team’s advantages and disadvantages are, what each team must do to sweep the mini-series, and what the impact will be should the two teams meet in the playoffs
WHY LAKERS SHOULD SWEEP TWO-GAME MINI-SERIES
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The 2 road games tomorrow and Tuesday night against the Thunder have unfortunately become ‘must win’ games for the Lakers, who are looking to hold the #3 seed in the West despite a tough 5-game closing schedule.
While the Lakers desperately need to win their last 5 games to hold the #3 seed, the 54-win Thunder no longer have a shot at 60 wins or any pressing motivation to beat the Lakers other than pride and getting a mental edge.
Despite the Lakers desperately needing to win and the Thunder not, OKC has been so dominant in the West throughout this season that they have been installed as close to 10-point favorites to win Saturday’s first game.
In a perfect world, the Lakers would prefer to keep their playoff plans close to the vest instead of having to go all-in late in the regular season to win two critical games against the Thunder with every weapon in their arsenal.
Instead, the Lakers need to come with a greater urgency than any other time this season. They need their Big Three of James, Doncic, and Reaves to have a juggernaut night and their key role players to have career games.
While the Thunder have maybe the deepest and most talented roster in the league, they have not actually experienced how to win championships the way that LeBron James has. They may very well still be a year away.
A healthy LeBron James and Luka Doncic will be an excellent challenge for the young, inexperienced Thunder to use as pre-playoff measuring stick. It will be interesting to see if JJ Redick can outcoach OKC’s Mark Daigneault.
In the end, the Lakers will count on the iconic basketball skills, IQ’s, experience, and leadership of their generational superstars LeBron James and Luka Doncic to overcome the young, playoff inexperienced Thunder.