LA Lakers playoff hopes: How the Lakers turned their season around
Despite a poor start to the season, winning only two out of the first twelve games played, the LA Lakers look like championship contenders.
The team is currently one game behind the sixth seed and with one game remaining, the Lakers have a chance of making it there. If they do not make it to the sixth seed, they will play in the newly formed format - the NBA play-in tournament.
This is a small tournament where teams ranked from the seventh to tenth seed will compete to solidify their positions in the playoffs. The chances of LA making the playoffs are good as it stands, but the game against the Utah Jazz will be huge.
So how did it come to this, how did the Lakers save their season? There are two factors that really stand out as to what led to this turnaround.
Trade deadline moves made the LA Lakers a genuine threat
A major factor in this mid-season turnaround is the trades that occurred right before the trade deadline.
The Lakers waived off Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverley, Thomas Bryant, Juan Toscano-Anderson, and Kendrick Nunn. In return, they received D'Angelo Russell, Mo Bamba, Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Davon Reed and Rui Hachimura. These players seem to fit the roster better and it is safe to say that the LA Lakers won these trades.
Austin Reaves took his opportunity to shine
Another factor for the success of the team is Austin Reaves. Reaves is an undrafted rookie out of the University of Oklahoma who signed a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. Reaves had a decent rookie season, but his recent performances have been exemplary.
When LeBron James suffered a right foot injury, it forced the team to find new ways to play. Instead of consistently feeding the ball to LeBron, they had to utilize their other weapons.
This is how Austin Reaves got the opportunity to shine and show what he could really do on the court. He's been averaging 20.6 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game, and has been shooting over 40% beyond the arc (over the past ten games).
Here's what former NBA player and sports analyst Kendrick Perkins had to say about the LA Lakers making it back to .500 after over a year.
"The Lakers are finally back at .500 since the Bubble Season with that must win against the Timberwolves tonight!!! AD with a casual 38 and 17 is going to be a matchup a problem for anybody in the Western Conference come post season!!! Carry the hell on…"
The Lakers are finally back at .500 since the Bubble Season with that must win against the Timberwolves tonight!!! AD with a casual 38 and 17 is going to be a matchup a problem for anybody in the Western Conference come post season!!! Carry the hell on…
With a huge game against the Utah Jazz looming, the Lakers have a great chance of making the playoffs.
With the big-name players they have available to them, the LA Lakers could win it all. Will this team be able to win an NBA championship? Only time will tell.