Around one month remains in the 2023-24 NBA regular season, and the Los Angeles Lakers are still in the hunt for a playoff berth. As they continue to earn wins over some of the best teams in the Western Conference, the Lakers are showing they will have a real chance to make a run should they make it to the postseason.
LA has looked like a much more formidable team over the last several weeks thanks to improved coaching decisions as well as standout performances from a few key players. As we examine which Lakers have had the most notable recent impact, a few players stand out, whether for positive or negative reasons.
These have been the biggest risers and fallers in Los Angeles as of late.
Riser: Anthony Davis
The Lakers' best player all season long, Anthony Davis has been putting in work for the Purple and Gold since October. But his talents have especially been shining as things have started getting down to the wire in the regular season.
AD enjoyed one of his best outings of the entire season the last time out against Minnesota. He terrorized a shorthanded Timberwolves frontcourt to the tune of 27 points and an incredible 25 rebounds, with three blocks to boot. His talents as a dominant low-post scorer, shot-blocker and rebounder were on full display.
The only teams he has had even an average performance against in the last month are Denver and Sacramento, both of which have been the Lakers' Achilles heel this year. Other than that, he has been consistently imposing his authority and willing LA to wins. His play will continue to be paramount for this team.
Faller: Taurean Prince
Coming over to Los Angeles from Minnesota last summer, Taurean Prince signed with the Lakers on a minimum deal after the Timberwolves opted not to keep him. His addition was one of several moves that led many to believe LA had pulled off a dream offseason to put them right back in the mix as a Western Conference contender once again.
To start the season, Head Coach Darvin Ham opted to go with Prince as a regular starter, with the belief that his three-point shooting prowess and defensive capability would make him a more than serviceable option in the front court as the Lakers' starting power forward. While he was never downright terrible, Ham would eventually figure it better to put Taurean with the bench unit given some of his shooting struggles.
Opting to go with Rui Hachimura in the starting unit has proved a big success for the Lakers thus far, and Prince's minutes have been dwindling as a result. It has been a stark reminder that there was a reason he came to LA on a minimum deal, and was never supposed to be a big contributor. As the regular season draws to a close, Prince's playing time and on-court contributions will likely become even more minute.
Riser: D'Angelo Russell
Another of the most important players for the Lakers as of late has been D'Angelo Russell. The story of D'Lo as it relates to the Lakers is certainly an interesting one. After being drafted second overall by the franchise in 2015, he joined Kobe Bryant for his farewell season and a team that was nowhere near playoff contention.
When he returned to Los Angeles at the 2023 trade deadline, he became one of the few players to ever share the locker room with both LeBron James and Kobe over the course of their NBA career. Although he may not be at the same level as those all-time greats, D'Angelo has always been adamant about following his own career path and blocking out the outside noise.
That is precisely what he did leading up to the trade deadline this year, when it was rumored that he could be on the trading block once again. D'Lo explained how he gained a new perspective about trade season after having been in rumors for years on end. In his mind, he should not choose to worry about something he has no control over. He would rather focus on just playing basketball.
That is precisely what Russell has done over the last six weeks, and it has led to some very solid results. He has averaged north of 21 points per game since the start of February, and is shooting 51.9% from the floor over his last five games. His 44-point outburst in the Lakers' win over the Bucks last week is proof that he is reaching a new level when LA needs him to most.
Faller: Spencer Dinwiddie
Leading up the trade deadline, there were talks that the Lakers could be up to something big. Mentions of Dejounte Murray, Donovan Mitchell and others were frequent, and the general feeling was that Rob Pelinka and the front office had something up their sleeves to give this fringe playoff team a boost.
But in the end, the deadline came and passed, and LA did not end up making any moves at the deadline. It was revealed that plans shifted, and the Lakers planned to instead craft a more major move for the upcoming offseason instead. In the meantime, the only roster move the team made was signing free agent Spencer Dinwiddie on a minimum deal.
They hoped that Dinwiddie would essentially fill the hole left by the injured Gabe Vincent, who has only played one game since October due to injury. But unfortunately, Spencer has been a massive disappointment. Since his arrival and his first game with the franchise on February 13, his production has already been declining.
It is not like he was expected to contribute a lot, but Dinwiddie has still fallen short of what was expected of him. His scoring numbers and assist totals have all gone down from last month to this month, and he is seeing the floor less as a result.