As positive as we would love to be about the Los Angeles Lakers we cannot deny what we are seeing on the court and what we are seeing on the court is rather straightforward: the Lakers are not a great basketball team.
To be fair, LeBron James has been banged up but should we expect him to have long healthy stretches at this point in his career? Plus, Russell Westbrook was brought in to make it easier when LeBron is hurt. He has done the opposite.
Things can change and there is still a lot of basketball left to play but it is hard to be confident in this Lakers team, especially when right now, there are at least four teams in the Western Conference who would easily beat this Lakers team in a playoff series.
The 4 Western Conference teams who would smoke the Los Angeles Lakers in the playoffs:
4. Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets have one of the best players in the league in reigning MVP, Nikola Jokic. Shoving match aside, Jokic is having another incredible year for the Nuggets and is picking up right where he left off.
Jamal Murray still has not played this season and in his absence, Michael Porter Jr. has been playing really well. It will be interesting to see how that dynamic unfolds when Murray returns but either way, the Nuggets are three deep with scorers who can hurt you.
That is not counting Aaron Gordon, who is a great option as the fourth-best player on a title-contending team. The Nuggets are the best defensive team in the league thus far (ranking first in points allowed per game) and have scorers that can hurt a team like the Lakers, who have one of the worst defenses in the league.
3. Utah Jazz
Every year, the Utah Jazz are one of the better teams in the regular season and then they disappoint in the playoffs. They are a classic case of a team that can run through the gauntlet of the regular season but become easier to expose in a seven-game playoff series.
Ironically enough, the biggest issue for the Jazz in recent history has been Rudy Gobert, who consistently puts together absurd regular-season numbers. Teams go small against the Jazz and it becomes a serious problem for the Jazz.
How are the Lakers going to go small if Anthony Davis doesn’t like playing center? Granted, he should play more center in the playoffs but it is not like the spacing around him is going to be all that great.
Davis is not a “small” center that can shoot from beyond the arc as Nicolas Batum did against the Jazz last season. The team already has one non-shooter in Russell Westbrook at point guard and LeBron can be hit or miss beyond the arc.
That would force the Lakers to put two good shooters next to that trio in big spots. Even if Carmelo Anthony and Wayne Ellington can hit threes, the Lakers would be putting three awful defenders on the court at the same time.
The Lakers cannot exploit the Jazz unless they figure something out with Westbrook and this fit.
2. Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Playoffs last season and if they meet in the playoffs this year, with the Lakers looking how they look, history will repeat itself.
Now, some may argue that the Suns only won because Anthony Davis was injured. To be fair, that is probably true. AD presented serious matchup problems for the Suns last year and it was clear that the Lakers were a much different team when AD was on the court than when he was off the court.
That being said, as disappointing as some of the players were last season, the depth last year is probably better than the depth this year, especially defensively. The Lakers were a bad matchup because they had the combo of size and the ability to defend the perimeter. The team does not really have that this season.
Phoenix continues to roll as well. This is a team that already knew its identity (something that the Lakers do not have) and they are continuing to learn how to maximize their scheme and the pieces together.
The Suns beat last year’s Lakers team and I think we can all agree that last year’s Lakers team is better than this year’s team, so far. So why should we expect the Lakers to beat the Suns even with a healthy AD?
1. Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are a really good basketball team and they have not even reached their best version yet this season. Granted, they have had the easiest schedule in the NBA thus far, but the Warriors have been winning games that they should win and Stephen Curry has to be considered the current MVP favorite.
Klay Thompson still hasn’t returned yet this season and even though he has suffered multiple serious injuries, his playstyle should not be impacted too much and he should be able to give the Warriors the same elite shooting.
He might not be the same elite defender but he will still be serviceable. Regardless, it obviously raises the ceiling of the Warriors when he does come back.
James Wiseman also has not played yet this season. While the second-year center might not make a big impact this season, he does still give the lineup more flexibility and if he makes a year two leap then the Warriors become even scarier.
It is hard to see the Lakers keeping up with the Warriors in a playoff series. Golden State currently ranks first in points per game and third in points allowed per game. LeBron returning obviously opens things up for the Lakers scoring-wise but it is hard to see how they can slow down a Warriors team that will also have Klay Thompson.
The Warriors made good moves in the offseason and signed several role players that the Lakers should have signed. Meanwhile, the Lakers made a desperate trade that has not panned out.
The Warriors might sweep the Lakers in a playoff series with the way LA is playing right now.