How Lakers Can Solve Their Biggest Questions as Playoffs Approach
The Los Angeles Lakers are supposed to be in the NBA championship conversation.
That is, after all, the whole point of having LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the roster.
And yet, there's no real reason to bring them up in title talks at the moment. Not when they're merely a handful of games above .500 and currently clinging to a spot in the play-in tournament.
Things could still change, though, and they will if the Lakers can find a way to answer their most pressing questions.
Keeping the Offense Rolling
1 of 3
As frustrating as this season has mostly been for the Lakers, they're at least playing their best basketball at the right time. Entering Wednesday night, they've won 10 of their last 14 games, mostly on the strength of their much-maligned offense.
Over this stretch, they've spiked to second overall in offensive rating, per NBA.com, which is truly an astounding jump considering they were 20th in the category prior to it. All three layers of their shooting slash (51.4/39.6/78.1) have perked up (from 49.2/36.5/77), and they're tallying more assists (30.2, up from 28.1) and fewer turnovers (11.6, down from 14.3).
Now, they've needed this improvement, because it's been a different story at the opposite end, where the defense has slipped from 15th to 20th in efficiency. Still, the offensive jump has more than offset the defensive decline, leading to a net increase of 4.9 points per 100 possessions.
If the offense can keep this up, and the defense climbs closer to the league's mid-tier, that's a winning formula.
Having Their Stars Stay Healthy
2 of 3
In recent years, the Lakers have often been forced to endure stretches without one or both of James and Davis.
Knock on wood, that hasn't happened yet. But given that James is 39 and Davis has a lengthy injury history behind him, that will remain a worry for as long as this group sticks around.
Clearly, having James and Davis healthy isn't enough on its own to spark a championship-level surge. Still, the Lakers don't want to go down the dark road of losing at least one of their top players at the least opportune time.
If L.A. can't keep this pair upright, then this campaign won't come anywhere close to where expectations have been set.
Austin Reaves Making a Leap
3 of 3
It was around this time last season that Austin Reaves proved there was more to his game than previously thought.
He was so good down the stretch that it felt like an ascension to stardom was imminent. After the All-Star break, he spent his final 23 games posting 17.6 points per night on a wildly efficient 57.8/44.3/85.6 shooting.
Expecting him to sustain that combination of volume and efficiency was perhaps a little much, but L.A. may have reasonably hoped he'd wind up closer to stardom than he currently stands. Now, a nightly output of 15.7 points on 49.4/37/86.6 shooting is nothing to sneeze at, but those also aren't the marks of someone filling the third spot on a championship-caliber Big Three.
The hope, then, is that Reaves can once again find a higher gear over this closing stretch. His numbers haven't erupted quite like they did before, but he is enjoying the kind of shooting success (53.2/41.2/100 since the All-Star break) that makes one wonder whether he may have another level in him yet.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
