Los Angeles Lakers: 3 Keys to beating the Utah Jazz
By Ethan Temkin
3.) Stretch the floor and keep Gobert away from the paint
The Jazz are one of the toughest teams defensively, and have been for some time. The centerpiece of that dominance is 2x Defensive Player of the Year winner Rudy Gobert. He is an absolute menace around the paint, holding opponents to only 45.9% on shots from within 6 feet of the rim.
For the Lakers, the answer to the Gobert problem is simple — get him away from the rim.
That may prove to be more difficult, as two out of the Laker’s three big men, JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard are complete non-shooters. This inefficiency has already been a problem for the Lakers as opposing big men have been able to sag off Howard and McGee, pack the paint and make life incredibly difficult for Anthony Davis. This problem will only be exacerbated with an elite defender in Gobert.
The solution to most of these issues have been to play Davis at center, and while he’s been hesitant to do so for extended minutes thus far, he’s going to have to if the Lakers want to leave Utah with a W. Davis is one of the most versatile offensive big men in the league, and his shooting touch means opposing big men generally have to venture out of the paint to effectively guard him.
Keeping Gobert out of the paint as much as possible is going to be huge, not only to get Gobert out of a rhythm defensively, but open up other options for LeBron James and company to attack the rim.