Taking care of the basktball is the foundation for a great offense. As of late, the Los Angeles Lakers have become far more secure with the ball than they were to start the season, and it's led to the best offensive stretch of the year for JJ Redick's team.
Before the All-Star break, the Lakers were a bottom-10 team in turnover rate. There wasn't one player who was to blame — Luka Doncic led the team in turnovers by a wide margin, but he has the ball in his hands so much that a high turnover rate comes with the territory. Everyone was just turning the ball over a little too much, and that added up to be a big problem.
Since the All-Star break, though, the Lakers have recorded the second-best turnover rate in the league. In the same stretch, they have the third-best offensive in basketball. It's no coincidence that holding onto the ball leads to more offensive success, and the Lakers have mad a clear effort to protect the ball.
Lakers are protecting the ball and it's leading to an elite offense
Everyone seems to be chipping in to make this possible. Luka Doncic is averaging just over three turnovers per game since the start of February, versus well over four from October to January.
While the Lakers haven't necessarily become a better passing team during this stretch (their assist rate is still 23rd in the league post All-Star), their lack of turnovers has made them feel like a better passing team. A low assist rate is fine for a few reasons; for one, the Lakers have multiple elite isolation players, so oftentimes they can score without a ton of ball movement, evidenced by the elite offensive rating.
Secondly, the Lakers aren't turning it over less because they're passing less; they passed the ball 269.5 times per game before the All-Star break, and have passed 269.1 times per game after the break. The passes are just sharper and more intentional than they were.
There has not been a drastic difference in play style for the team, there's just been an improvement in play quality. That's led to a scorching hot streak and a real chance at the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. If this is what the Lakers offense looks like the rest of the way, it's not going to get any easier for opponents to stop. JJ Redick has this team playing some sharp hoops right now.