The Lakers’ record and high-end talent, led by Luka Dončić, LeBron James and Austin Reaves, suggests they’reNBA title contenders. A deeper dive into their season-long numbers suggests they’re pretenders.
The truth, for now, lies somewhere in the middle, with the Lakers having 28 regular-season games before the postseason to determine which side of the fence they’ll end up on.
With the trade deadline andNBA All-Star Weekendfirmly behind them, the Lakers’ attention has turned back toward the “sprint” that is the final two months of the regular season.
Their 33–21 record before the break, putting them at No. 5 in the Western Conference standings and 1 ½ games behind the Nuggets at No. 3, is made more impressive by the fact that Dončić (12), James (18) and Reaves (26)have missed a combined 56 games.
But they have a net rating (dead even) — which is typically a strong indicator of the quality of a group — of a team that’s expected to have a .500 record, not be 12 games over the mark.
What are the factors that’ll determine the Lakers’ success to close the season?
With Dončić, James and Reaves at the helm for over the last year, the Lakers have been expected to be an elite offensive team.
But that hasn’t consistently been the case, especially this season.
The Lakers’ 116.3 offensive rating (points per 100 possessions) coming out of the All-Star break ranks No. 11. Not bad — but not good enough for a team with as clear defensive shortcomings as the Lakers.
NBA contenders are usually very good to elite on at least one end of the floor, if not both. So far, they’ve been neither despite Dončić, James and Reaves all performing at All-NBA or All-Star levels offensively.
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
