Lakers vs. Thunder: Lack of Bench Production Will Be LA's Downfall vs. OKC

The Los Angeles Lakers' size advantage in their Western Conference semifinal series against the Oklahoma City Thunder has and will continue to be negated by their significant lack of solid production off the bench. 

Through three games of the two teams' seven-game series, the Thunder reserves have outscored the Lakers' 101-51, by an average of 16.7 points per game. Though Oklahoma City's bench features the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year in James Harden, he alone is not responsible for holding LA's backup unit to a combined 25 points in Games 2 and 3 of the series. 

Backup point guard Steve Blake currently leads the Lakers bench in scoring this series, averaging 5.7 points per game, which is sadly more than starting point guard Ramon Sessions (5.3 PPG); Sessions only averages one more minute per game than Blake in the series, however. 

Outside of the struggling Blake and Sessions, much of the Lakers' lack of bench production can be linked back to the rest of LA's starters. The core four consisting of Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol and Metta World Peace has taken 75 percent of the Lakers' shots this series, and scored 75 percent of LA's points.

Here's the kicker, those four players are shooting a combined 39 percent from the field in three games against the Thunder, thus bringing down the Lakers' offensive efficiency and giving the bench little opportunity to help out.

Bench players Jordan Hill and Matt Barnes are shooting 56 percent and 43 percent from the floor respectively thus far in the series, yet their shot attempts per game account for less than seven percent of LA's total field goal attempts in the series. 

Blake, Barnes and Hill are shooting 48 percent from the floor in this series as a trio, but all three players together account for less than 12 percent of the Lakers' total shot attempts against the Thunder. The conclusion: Yes, LA's bench has been missing in this series, but you can blame the Lakers starters for that. 

In the end though, regardless of how or why the LA bench is being ignored by head coach Mike Brown and the Lakers' core, it is being out-shined by OKC's backups. This fact has cost the Lakers twice now, and it's only a matter of time before the fresher Thunder turn the Lakers into a postseason afterthought. 

Follow Patrick Clarke on Twitter for more on the 2012 NBA playoffs.