Lake Show Life
Fansided

Lakers: The 3 best lineups without Anthony Davis are legitimately shocking

By Jason Reed

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE - DECEMBER 29: Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard #39 Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James #6 and Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook #0 during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum on December 29, 2021 in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE - DECEMBER 29: Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard #39 Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James #6 and Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook #0 during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum on December 29, 2021 in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next
(Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers
(Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers /

The Los Angeles Lakers are running out of time and need to turn things around quickly and must do so without Anthony Davis. Davis injured his ankle in the last game before the All-Star Break and will miss at least a month. While Davis is a huge loss, the Lakers have actually played better without him this season.

Regardless of the numbers from earlier in the year, replacing Davis in the rotation at this point in the season is going to be tough. Frank Vogel has a tough task and he should be looking at the numbers to see which lineups will yield the best results while AD is out.

Lucky for him, we did the work for him. We went over to Sports-Reference’s Stathead tool and found the Lakers’ three best lineups without Anthony Davis and boy… will they shock you.

The 3 best lineups for the Lakers to play without Anthony Davis

3. Avery Bradley, LeBron James, Stanley Johnson, Malik Monk, Russell Westbrook (+12.9 net rating)

To qualify for this list a five-man lineup had to have played at least 25 minutes together this season. That might sound like a really small bar to cross but with all of the moving pieces this season, the Lakers only have 18 of such lineups.

As far as this lineup is concerned, it is actually the most-used five-man lineup by the Lakers all season with 77.3 minutes played together. As frustrating as Russell Westbrook and Avery Bradley can be, it is clear that this lineup should be utilized in AD’s absence.

The defense is a bit worrisome with Westbrook and Monk sharing the court and the Lakers are a bit small in this lineup. However, small-ball can thrive in the regular season in today’s NBA and LeBron has had a lot of offensive success playing the five for the Lakers this season.

This probably is not the crunchtime lineup moving forward, but it is a good starting point and probably should be the starting five based on the numbers.

Home/Lakers News