Can Lebron James lead the Lakers to success?

The Lakers entered the playoffs this season by the skin of their teeth. They had a disastrous beginning to their season, losing 10 of their opening 12 games despite having high hopes of a top six finish.

A slight renaissance at the start of the calendar year upped their fortunes slightly, though it was not quite enough to see them through to the playoffs, instead having to settle for a chance in the playing tournament.

James has been in electric form since then. His performance in the dramatic playing game against the Minnesota Timberwolves showed that King James was officially in playoff mode, notching up 30 points along with 10 rebounds.

He has shown absolutely no signs of slowing down since and as of writing, he has managed a double-double in all but one game (the outlier leaving him one rebound short of another), with the Lakers currently leading the 2 nd seeded Memphis Grizzlies 3-1 in the series. DraftKings have them at +1000 to win the championship this season.

These heroics have led to many questioning whether the Lakers may actually have a real chance at winning the championship this year and right now it would be impossible to write them off. 

To say LeBron is leading by example would be an understatement and the 4x champion has his sights set clear on completing a full hand of rings in 2023.

It would not be fair to only focus on LeBron however. Anthony Davis is also averaging a double-double in the postseason, just as he was in the regular season. 

He is every bit as important to this Lakers side as James and with both players firing on all cylinders right now we could very well see the duo celebrating at least a Conference victory.

The Lakers were still on a negative win-loss record with a depleted roster whilst the Warriors’ fortunes had just started to turn. It was make or break-time and it seemed they had a mountain to climb. The Warriors were ahead at the break though only narrowly and there was still plenty of belief within the Lakers camp.

Despite only winning one quarter throughout the entire game, the Lakers came out on top winning 109-103.

They would go on to win seven of their next three. They then won 10 of their final 15 regular season games to secure a playing appearance and whilst they faced a stiff test against the Timberwolves, there was a newfound confidence within the team.

They of course dramatically delivered the goods after Minnesota scored three free throws with 0.1 seconds left on the clock, sending the game into overtime.

Although fatigue was clearly setting in, Lebron and co dug down deep to go 10-4 in the extra five minutes and win the game 108-102.

They have made an extremely strong showing so far against the Grizzlies and look likely to make it to the semifinals, but what are the team's strengths and weaknesses?

Strengths

Shooting – Yes, that’s right, out of seemingly nowhere one of the team's glaring weaknesses has become their biggest strength. In their opening five games of the season, they shot 42-of-177 from deep.

They ended the season ranked 26th in 3-point attempts and 25th in percentage. Rui Hachimura is now averaging three 3-pointers per game at 75.0% with Austin Reaves and Anthony Davis shooting at 40%+.

Hachimura is also averaging 66.7% from field goal attempts and the Japanese star has been a secret weapon of sorts so far.

Boards – LeBron and Davis have been absolute beasts on the boards. They are currently averaging 10.7 and 12.7 respectively in the postseason with Davis leading all other players in the playoffs. 

The latter has also been incredible defensively, averaging 5.0 blocks per game, again leading all other players in the playoffs. The Lakers are 2nd in the postseason for defensive rebounds and it has helped them massively.

Weaknesses

Playmaking – Despite improving their shooting, the team’s playmaking has not quite been as good.

They average just 21.8 assists per game, however, there is no doubt that fans will be happy to give up passing plays for their superior 3-point shooting compared to the regular season.

Fatigue – The Lakers have played a lot of basketball this season. They saw seven of their games go to overtime in the regular season along with a further two since the playoffs began. 

They of course have the luxury of a bigger gap between games during the postseason, but there is a danger of fatigue in this team, especially for a roster that has struggled with injuries this season.

The Lakers are bonafide contenders in 2023 despite their woes throughout the regular season. They look likely to take out the 2nd seeds and with their stars firing on all cylinders, they could truly go all the way.

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