3. The perimeter defense has to improve
I almost feel bad including this as one of the improvements that we need to see in this game because as a Laker fan, you have probably already heard this same old song and dance 100 times by now. Without Avery Bradley, the Los Angeles Lakers’ perimeter defense has been woeful.
We first saw it in the team’s scrimmages before the games really mattered and it has continued into the seeding games. If you just look at the numbers it might not look as bad, but the Lakers have been severely lacking in solid, consistent perimeter defense.
The team’s saving grace thus far was terrible shooting nights from the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder where both teams were missing open threes. If both teams shot the ball how they normally do, the Lakers might just be 1-5 in the bubble and the Thunder loss would have been even worse.
Collectively, teams are shooting 36.6 percent from beyond the arc against the Lakers. Again, it is not fantastic, but it certainly does not seem like something to be overly concerned about.
If we take away those two bad shooting nights from the Thunder and Jazz, and I want to stress this again, they got a lot of open looks, then the Lakers’ opponents are shooting 41.3 percent from downtown. That is bad.
How do you think that is going to translate in the playoffs against a team like Portland that can shoot the three-ball with the best of them? Spoiler alert: not great.
It has to improve. No more coasting excuses. There is only one more game after this until the playoffs start.