The Lakers, who were going through a difficult period of their schedule, prevailed thanks to their defense, which kept Oklahoma City to 39% shooting and stopped NBA MVP contender Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. During the team’s morning shoot-around, the Lakers’ coaching staff discussed the value of defense. Players were beseeched to stop the ball on defense. Avoid gambling. Avoid fouls when defending. Obtain defensive rebounds. When playing the Thunder (42-19), the Lakers essentially accomplished everything said above.
Gilgeous-Alexander, who averaged 31.2 points per game and was the second-leading scorer in the league, was limited to 20 points on five of thirteen shots. Another rising talent for the Thunder, Jalin Williams, only made two of his nine shots, scoring seven points. Darvin Ham, the coach of the Lakers, praised his team’s defense. The Lakers’ defense was almost perfect in the first half, limiting Oklahoma City to just 30.6% shooting en route to a 52-43 advantage. Although the Lakers should have done better, the Thunder had far too many easy points (14), thanks to their 12 first-half turnovers.
It was the best defensive half of the season, I told them at halftime, Ham remarked. Thanks to a stifling defense that hadn’t shown up much this season, the Lakers increased their lead to 89-72 after three quarters. Early in the fourth quarter, D’Angelo Russell made back-to-back three-pointers, signaling the start of the rout, with the Lakers leading by 24 points. Afterward, someone asked Russell if he enjoyed being the hot hand. He replied to Spectrum SportsNet, “Hell yeah.”
“It appears that’s what I do. It feels pleasant. When I’m hot, my teammates come find me. I find it easier when I extend the floor in that manner. That is the effect of shooting. It pleases me. Something to remember in case the Thunder and Lakers play each other in the postseason: This season, the Lakers defeated Oklahoma City 3-1. Another item that would cheer the Lakers (34–29), who are in ninth position, even if they don’t believe in the standings: They closed the gap on sixth-place Phoenix to two games.
Teams seven through ten compete in the always dangerous play-in round, while the top six teams in the West receive automatic berths to the playoffs. With 24 points and 12 rebounds, Anthony Davis helped the Lakers defeat Oklahoma City 48-36 in points in the paint. LeBron James, who scored 19 points, said, “We understand that when the ball is popping and everybody is feeling comfortable, we’ve been playing some really good basketball offensively.”
The Lakers prevailed 55-38 in the battle of the boards. The team’s home games against Sacramento on Wednesday, Milwaukee on Friday, and Minnesota on Sunday will cap off a difficult stretch of the schedule.