All Lakers Roundtable For LA-Warriors Second Round Matchup
Your Los Angeles Lakers find themselves on the verge of kicking off what should be an exciting and storyline-filled second round series against the Golden State Warriors. The matchup will mark Lakers All-Star small forward LeBron James' sixth postseason confrontation against Golden State. The Chosen One played in four straight NBA Finals against the Warriors, winning in 2016, and his Lakers subsequently won a close play-in tournament game in 2021.
Now, the Warriors are favored to win the two teams' latest battle, and advance to their second straight Western Conference Finals. But the Lakers are rolling of late, and could present a unique challenge to the defending champs.
Our panel of All Lakers experts -- Alex Kirschenbaum, Ricardo Sandoval, Noel Sanchez and Noah Camras -- decided to unpack some key questions ahead of the series' inaugural game, tonight at 7 p.m. PT on TNT.
1. What key matchup could decide this series?
Alex: I think LA fans should keep an eye on how Anthony Davis performs against lumbering Warriors center Kevon Looney. Through that Sacramento series, Looney proved once again that he has evolved into a terrific rebounder (he averaged 15.1 boards, including 5.3 offensive rebounds, against the Kings) and passer (4.3 in the last series), while remaining a modest scorer (6.9 points per game on an efficient 57.1% shooting from the floor). Looney isn't nearly as athletic as Davis, in that Looney can't match him for lateral quickness or vertical ability. Davis is probably the most imperative player for Los Angeles on both sides of the rock, and theoretically should be able to bully his way into lots of easy buckets. But Looney could have something to say about that.
Noah: It has to be Stephen Curry vs. the Lakers defense. If the Lakers are able to slow Steph down, they’re going to win this series. The other fun one to watch is down in the paint between Anthony Davis and Kevon Looney.
Ricardo: The matchup between the guards could decide this series. Who's going to guard Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson? It's not a one-man job; multiple players will guard those two guys, which could occur in only one defensive series. But the matchup of Curry vs. whoever is guarding him could decide the series. Both Splash brothers could go off if they're feeling it, which could be the difference in this series.
Noel: I'm going to keep a close eye on whenever Andrew Wiggins and Jared Vanderbilt match up. Vando will definitely spend a lot of time guarding Curry but if Wiggins gets going from the mid-range and is hitting shots, it'll be key he can guard him as well. On the the other end of the floor, he has to keep shooting those corner 3's with confidence if Wiggins allows him to!
2. How will LeBron James perform after a relatively modest scoring run against Memphis?
Noah: I think this is going to be a big series for LeBron James. He’s coming off a few extra days of rest and was able to take a whole series to get his feet under him. Now, in a series where all eyes will be on the legacies of him and Steph Curry, LeBron is going to dominate.
Ricardo: The other guys stepped up for three of the four wins the Lakers secured in round one, and even though it was nice to witness, we need a series of vintage LeBron performances to win this series. I believe LeBron will take over every now and then and show he is superior to the Warriors and Curry. I expect an aggressive James in all facets of the game.
Noel: It looked like LeBron was just getting his feet wet again after a long break from basketball but there are few teams he comes more prepared for than the Warriors. Looney is going to have his hands full with AD so I'm looking at LeBron to get him in foul trouble early by attacking the rim and not just settling for three's.
Alex: James averaged "just" 22.2 points per game on 48.6% shooting across six games against the Grizzlies, the lowest scoring average of his NBA career. He'll have to fend off one of the Warriors' best defenders, small forward Andrew Wiggins, if he hopes to improve his shooting. I think he'll once again defer to LA guards D'Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves to set up a lot of the team's offense, much as he did in Game 6 against Memphis, and could see another more minimal scoring run in the series.
3. What should Darvin Ham's bench look like in this series?
Ricardo: Dennis Schröder and Rui Hachimura will be the only two constants coming off the Lakers bench. Other than it will be a combination of what we saw last series and maybe a little more Troy Brown Jr. Brown Jr. can maneuver around screens better than others on the roster, and we’ll need Malik Beasley in there for some defense and ability to make shots to keep up with the Warriors' three-point shooting. Overall, I expect to see Brown, Beasley, and Gabriel outside of Schröder and Hachimura off the bench.
Noel: Schröder will get a ton of minutes off the bench without a doubt but Rui Hachimura's scoring is going to be huge as well here. I would love to see some Lonnie Walker minutes in spurts but I think Ham will still ride with Malik Beasley and Troy Brown along with Wenyen Gabriel to rest AD. Also, don't be surprised if Tristan Thompson gets some run if Kevon Looney is dominating the boards.
Alex: By the end of the Grizzlies series, Ham only allocated meaningful minutes to three bench players: backup power forward Rui Hachimura, reserve point guard Dennis Schröder, and backup power forward/center Wenyen Gabriel. Troy Brown Jr. and Malik Beasley played garbage-time minutes only. I think Beasley is worth at least auditioning once again with some rotation minutes, although he was terrible against Memphis, logging just 4.2 points on .292/.263/1.000 shooting splits in 11 minutes per game.
Noah: In the Lakers' 40-point Game 6 win, Darvin Ham shrank his rotations. Why should he change that now? Keep it at eight and bring in Troy Brown Jr. and Malik Beasley only if necessary to get guys some rest or if there’s foul trouble — but ride your most proven guys.
4. Will LA or Golden State win the series? And in how many games?
Noel: I have Lakers taking home this historic series in seven games.
Alex: Though these two teams are pretty evenly matched, I think Stephen Curry is just playing at another level right now, as evinced by his 50-point outburst in Game 7 of the Dubs' win over the Sacramento Kings. I'll say Warriors in six.
Noah: I have the Lakers winning in six. They’ll steal Game 1, lose Game 2, win Games 3 and 4, lose Game 5 and win Game 6 in LA to head to the Western Conference Finals.
Ricardo: This series is going to be an all-timer. It's NorCal vs. SoCal, Bay Area vs. The City of Angels. It's the matchup we were all hoping for, and we got it. The Warriors have not lost a Western Conference matchup since 2014. Curry has owned the West for nearly a decade, and I believe that will end at the hands of the Lakers and LeBron James this round. The Lakers' depth and ability to defend at a high level will prevail. They'll do enough on the offensive end, and Anthony Davis will dominate against a slower, less athletic frontcourt in this series — Lakers in seven.
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