SR – NBA Bubble Breakdowns #3: Los Angeles Lakers

As we get closer to the NBA Restart, we’ve reached the Top 3 on our NBA Bubble Breakdowns, with the 1st seed of the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers haven’t had much Playoff appearances since 2013. The team is now in a prime position to be making the first run in 7 years, and have lots of potential to make a deep run in the Playoffs.

Only one player on the Lakers roster, Guard Avery Bradley, has opted out of the NBA Bubble to be with his family. Bradley also vocalized himself alongside Nets Guard Kyrie Irving expressing their concern that the NBA Restart overshadowing the Black Lives Matter movement. Although Bradley’s veteran defensive savvy will be missed by the Lakers, they also signed NBA Free Agents in Dion Waiters and J.R. Smith, who will be returning to the floor after having not been apart of a roster since last season. Also starting PG for the Lakers Rajon Rondo will be out 6-8 weeks due to an injury to his thumb during the return process to the Restart.

Although the Lakers are currently seeded #1, which puts them in a premier position to make one of the deepest runs that they have had since their first round exit in 2013. Once again I must admit, being a lifelong Lakers fan, I have my hopes and biases towards the team. But I also must say that the Lakers can’t let up and take their foot off the gas at any point throughout the Playoffs.

Lakers’ Season In-Review (49-14, 1st in West)

Whether you’re a fan of the Lakers or not, it is hard to deny the sheer amount of excitement and electricity that they play with when they step out onto the floor. Having been referred to as Showtime Lakers 2.0, they’ve easily become the powerhouse that we all knew them once to be in the late 90’s early 2000’s. In comparison to the Lakers of last year, it’s quite clear that this year’s Lakers has a much stronger amount of depth of the bench. The Lakers have surrounded LeBron and AD with a multitude of veteran players, like Dwight Howard, Javale McGee, and Danny Green, to younger up and coming names like Alex Caruso, Kyle Kuzma, and Quinn Cook. The only issue with this team is ensuring that these role players can play at high levels consistently. The team is currently ranked 5th in Offensive Rating and 3rd in Defensive Rating, ultimately showing the amount of talent that they have amongst their players. The Lakers bench, specifically, prior to the hiatus was contributing 34% to their scoring, and knowing that with such a percentage they withhold a 49-14 record, they are on a good pace going into the Playoffs if they are able to maintain such contributions. On the defensive end, the Lakers are more times than not averaging more blocks and steals per game than their opponents with 6.8bpg and 8.6spg. With such effectiveness on the defensive end is what truly unlocks the Lakers and allows them to play the brand of basketball that both we as fans and they as players have come to expect of themselves.

Looking into the Bubble:

The Lakers have quite the challenging schedule, having to face-off against the Clippers on opening night of the NBA Restart then followed by the 2nd seeded Raptors and many other Playoff contending teams like the Jazz, Thunder, and Rockets. There are many storylines that are associated with the Lakers this time around, and with that it’ll be an interesting journey to watch for the Lakers, as they come in with a team structure that wants to play big, in a league that has been dominated by small ball for many years now. Additionally to that, if LeBron is able to come out of the Restart as an NBA Champion, he’ll be apart of the short list of players to have one 3 NBA Titles with 3 different teams, which is perfectly contrasted to Clippers F Kawhi Leonard, someone who shares a similar story. We come closer and closer to seeing things come to fruition for the Lakers, come July 30th.