the lakers have the right personnel to be great defensively in the last 5 minutes while being consistent offensively

edit like the lakers are bafflingly the best defence in the clutch somehow still like a ¹⁄₄ through the season

To me the Lakers are basically the inverse of the Rockets

Rockets are easily more complete overall for the first 45 minutes of games but late in games I could definitely see their lack of an actual point guard causing some turnovers and silly plays their best playmaker is Sengun and someone needs to throw him the entry pass in the first place

Lakers have some obvious flaws in their roster so basically everyone but outright bad teams can hang around against them but Luka/LeBron/Reaves is arguably the best on-ball creation trio in the league so they’re probably less likely to stall out late in games

If the Lakers and Rockets play a series I could see it being a lot like us vs. OKC last year where Houston has like a +50 combined point differential but it goes 7 games lol

Why is the thumbnail a picture of Alex Caruso lol.

We take our schedule losses very seriously (by not taking them seriously)

Only 6 losses and I think they’ve all been complete blowouts, 3 on the second night of a back to back and all but one of them missing at least one of the big 3.

When the Lakers lose they lose by like 50. Whenever they’re blowing out a team and sit their main guys in the 4th, their bench is so fucking bad that they turn any 20+ point lead into a single digit lead by the end of the 4th.

Lakers got 3 elite lvl playmakers so if you don’t blow them out the cooking you late game. Beacuse the gonna get a good play every time. But there defense is ass so everyone can hang with them

They have miracle merchants. Thats the only explanation here

Seriously though, i think their numbers are skewed because of injuries too. They played their preferred starting line up like ⁴⁄₂₃ games. Lebron ofc missed 15 games himself but out of 4 they were supposed to be “healthy” they are missing their 6th man in Smart.

Just too many lineup changes/inconsistency with injuries and NSJ, Vando, Bronny, DK, Maxi minutes that muddy their real number.

Why are teams playing hard the entire 48 minutes when they can relax at the start of the 4th quarter until the opponents taken the lead and then just play serious basketball in the final minutes. Are they stupid?

In the clutch I’m betting on Luka and LeBron over almost any other duo right now.

I think analytics are gonna have a hard time with this team Due to its volume of outliers.

i think there will be some regression - however it is a skill to win close games

Didn’t someone bring up that this is common for LeBron’s teams? (not that he played much this season)

I gotta admit, I knew the Lakers would be good this year, but I did not expect them to be 17-6 at this point. Credit to the improved roster construction compared to last season, and the growth of some players (seems like Reaves is playing out of his gourd).

Have you guys actually been paying attention during their games?

It’s a combination of factors but I think its pretty evident why this is happening. 

The Lakers clearly look like they aren’t even trying most of the time. Lots of goofing off while on the court- Luka pinching people’s butts, LeBron casually chatting with other teams bench, AR having bromance w Luka, Luka teasing rui about his missed layups etc. 

They are super lazy on defense. You see this again and again every game. Their defensive intensity varies wildly depending on who is on the floor. And they step up their intensity in small spurts and when they need to at the end of games. Its like they put forth the minimal effort required to keep the game close and then toward the end of the game they say “ok guys time to start playing for real”. Because they are so top heavy it works. 

As others have mentioned, They’ve also had a big variation in lineups due to injuries. And their 3rd string being absolutely terrible makes blowout losses look worse. But I really think its more of an effort thing. They all lock in defensively when its needed and not anytime else.

Seems unsustainable. Same thing happened last season too

Our defense ain’t good enough to have a high net rating and we’ve had our stars all miss a decent amount of time

This team is a statistical oddball because it’s transitioning between two eras on short notice thanks to the sudden Luka trade. So the roster construction is piecemeal and patchwork as they don’t want to commit to major contracts until Summer 2026. Key players are playing for big contracts: AR, Rui, Ayton, and Bron.

So far Lakers are getting long breaks between games so they has been riding AR and Luka for insane minutes to squeak out wins. The later part of the season, when they get less rest days, will test the team’s mettle.

Based on the interviews, JJ Redick’s defensive gameplan seems very effort-economical: attacking specific options, living with the rest, then try to outscore the end result. He doesn’t have defensive tools to work with outside of the injured Smart, a very raw rookie and the offensively-limited Vando.

That’s pretty incredible but it does make sense. They have some damn good closers on their team.

Now that’s a fucking interesting stat 

Lakers have one of the best staffs in the NBA. There are teams that are 2x top to bottom way more talented but don’t have the results. If playoffs were best of 1 or 3 they would be a favorite besides maybe 3 teams in the NBA. Full stop. Their staff has ran circles around others.

They have LeBron having the IQ to manipulate and predict what’s going to happen

Doesn’t hurt to have the best whistle in the league

Regression hit the Kansas City Chiefs hard this year.

Yeah. On the one hand, this is called mean reversion prior to the reversion.

On the other hand they have some personnel and a team composition that you would expect to not blow teams out but to also close games at a high rate.

With AR glowing up and Bron sort of kind of accepting and playing into his role, they’re an interesting team. I don’t think you can ever count a Luka led team out once the playoffs start.

I’m not a big Laker fan, but I would like to see them stay healthy and for Bron to have the chance to cement or tarnish his legacy by how he chooses to show up for this team this season. It’ll be special and fun to watch if he fully embraces his role with this squad.

Formula with Luka is always just keep the game close and he’ll give you good chance to win when it matters.

I wonder how many free throws they shot in those games 🤔

3 bad losses all on the second night of a back to back plays a part

Why is Caruso on the thumbnail when it is Lakers mentioned 🥲

I expect some mean reversion in our record as well as the net rating, but we’re built to thrive in crunch time when the game slows down

The clutch revord will balance itself out eventually.

It seems that way lots of years, and I always think they get preferential ref treatment.

It’s bc the refs gift them free throws when it matters most

Well they have the best whistle in the game since sleepless nights

NOW MENTION THE FREE THROW DISPARITY!!!!!!!!!!!

Lakers are the ultimate glass canon team. Luka and Lebron are do it all players that cover so many holes which makes them competitive in almost every game. Least athletic team in the league aside from the Clippers so they lose every hustle stat like disruptions, transition offense/defense.

They have the worst perimeter defense of any playoff team. Closest thing to a two way player is a semi washed Marcus Smart and 41 yo playoff Lebron. Worst bench in the league for 3 years running, it gives them no margin of error if one starter is off in the playoffs. Only 2 reliable playoff players Luka and Lebron, maybe ³⁄₄ if Ayton reverts to his 2021 form and Smart 2023. Reaves has a lot to prove in the playoffs since he tends to disappear in higher stakes games where he faces greater defensive pressure.

Whichever team faces the Lakers in the first round will have the advantage in so many departments. Minnesota again, Warriors?

Having unlimited free throws will do that

which is why Im not convinced a luka x AR backcourt and bron on the wing is doing anything serious. Not to mention once the playoff whistle comes around.

That’s cute and all

Thunder in 5

And they will once again be a paper tiger in the playoffs and the biggest ul1st round upset candidate