The Los Angeles Lakers have advanced to the NBA Playoffs and just like the last time the purple and gold made the playoffs, they are the seventh seed in the Western Conference. Like in 2021, the team that the Lakers are playing is probably a bit upset that they have to face LeBron James and Anthony Davis in round one.
Los Angeles is on a collision course with the Memphis Grizzlies, who have had an up-and-down season, to say the least. The Lakers won the season series against the Grizzlies two games to one with all three of the games coming after the turn of the calendar year.
Those regular-season matchups don’t really mean much but there still are several reasons to be optimistic that the Lakers will get this done and advance to round two.
3 reasons why the Lakers will upset the Grizzlies in the NBA Playoffs:
1. Anthony Davis’ absurd numbers vs the Grizzlies
Anthony Davis has absolutely dominated the Grizzlies this season and has averaged nearly 30 points and 20 rebounds a game. A two-game sample-size is small, sure, but Davis is set up nicely to dominate his opposition in this particular playoff matchup.
A big reason why Davis is set up for success is the lack of Steven Adams for the Grizzlies. Adams is out of action and without him, Memphis does not have much quality size to throw at the Lakers. Sure, the team has Jaren Jackson Jr, but his style of play gets hindered by the fact that he does not have a center to rely on.
Plus, Triple J has never been someone to play big minutes as he has never averaged over 30 minutes per game. He might be a great defender but not having Adams is going to make it very hard for him to slow down AD’s dominance.
The Lakers won the NBA Championship in 2020 behind a stellar postseason by Davis and the team lost in 2021 because he got hurt. He is extremely important and is set up to dominate.