The Los Angeles Lakers are tied for the best record in the
league at 18-3 and are showing no signs of slowing down. But what’s been the
secret sauce for the team’s hot start? Here are three factors contributing to
their success.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should know that
Los Angeles Lakers are one of the best teams in the NBA right now.
With a superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, a strong defense, and an offense that’s
starting to come around, the team has jumped out to an impressive 18-3 record,
putting them at the top of the Western Conference standings.
As of right now, the Lakers have the 8th best offensive
rating and 4th best defensive, giving them a net rating of +8.1, which is 3rd
in the league. They also have been winning games in convincing fashion, with an
average margin of victory of 8.2, good for 3rd in the league.
We all expected the Lakers to be good this year, but to
have one of the best records in the league, coupled with the statistics to back
up that success, was unimaginable. No matter what way you slice it, the Los
Angeles Lakers have easily been one of the most dominant teams in the NBA.
But what has been the cause of this? Let’s take a closer
look and examine three major factors contributing to the Laker’s hot start.
3.) An easy schedule to start the season
A major factor contributing to the Lakers’ hot start has
been a very favorable schedule where 12 out of the 18 games played have been
against opponents with a sub .500 record.
But this isn’t discounting the Lakers’ success thus far, as
the Lakers’ record is a clear indication that they have been taking care of
business and winning the games they are supposed to, which is what you want to
see in an NBA Finals contender.
In addition, even though the schedule has been pretty easy
thus far, the team has beaten some tough competition within that, such as the
Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, and Utah Jazz, all of whom are squarely in the
playoff hunt.
However, the Lakers are about to start a brutal December
schedule, where twelve out of the fourteen will be against playoff contenders,
but thanks to their strong record, the team is in a good position to maintain a
foothold in the West.
2.) Defense first mentality to start the season
For most teams heading into a new season, there are a
number of things that they have to contend with. Whether it be a new coach
installing his scheme, or newly acquired players developing chemistry with one
another, these things take time to work out.
The Lakers had to contend with both of these things, as
they had a new head coach in Frank Vogel and virtually an entirely new team via
free agency and trade. While the offensive issues manifested themselves early
for the Lakers, the defense has been the thing keeping them in many games,
especially early in the season.
From the jump, the team has been an elite defensive unit
and has maintained that dominance so far, staying in the top 3 in both
defensive efficiency and net rating. However, the Lakers’ success on the
defensive end shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, as Vogel was the man
behind those 2010s Pacers teams that gave LeBron’s Heat the biggest challenge
during their four-year run.
With a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in Anthony
Davis, and solid perimeter defenders in Danny Green, Avery Bradley, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Vogel once again has the personnel
to make his impact on the defensive end.
1.)
Contributions across the board
A team is the
sum of its parts and this is definitely the case when it comes to how the
Lakers are sitting with an 18-3 record.
Generally
speaking, a team’s success lives and dies with the performance of the best
player(s). But the Lakers, so far, have had different players on the roster
step up for different games, in addition to the consistent dominance of LeBron
James and Anthony Davis.
Basically every
player on the team has had made a game-changing play at one point or another.
Whether it was Danny Green’s game-tying 3-pointer against the Dallas Mavericks
or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s clutch threes against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Don’t
forget Dwight
Howard‘s throwback game against the Charlotte Hornets where he dropped 16
points and 10 rebounds with four blocks on 8-of-8 shooting from the field.
Not to say that
other teams don’t have similar contributions from role players, but it’s been
refreshing not having to watch James and Davis carry this team from start to
finish every single game.
The bottom line
is that when one player isn’t feeling it that night, the Lakers have someone
else who shoulders the load and makes up for it, which has been absolutely
essential for the Lakers’ successful start to the season.
The Los Angeles Lakers are tied for the best record in the
league at 18-3 and are showing no signs of slowing down. But what’s been the
secret sauce for the team’s hot start? Here are three factors contributing to
their success.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should know that
Los Angeles Lakers are one of the best teams in the NBA right now.
With a superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, a strong defense, and an offense that’s
starting to come around, the team has jumped out to an impressive 18-3 record,
putting them at the top of the Western Conference standings.
As of right now, the Lakers have the 8th best offensive
rating and 4th best defensive, giving them a net rating of +8.1, which is 3rd
in the league. They also have been winning games in convincing fashion, with an
average margin of victory of 8.2, good for 3rd in the league.
We all expected the Lakers to be good this year, but to
have one of the best records in the league, coupled with the statistics to back
up that success, was unimaginable. No matter what way you slice it, the Los
Angeles Lakers have easily been one of the most dominant teams in the NBA.
But what has been the cause of this? Let’s take a closer
look and examine three major factors contributing to the Laker’s hot start.
3.) An easy schedule to start the season
A major factor contributing to the Lakers’ hot start has
been a very favorable schedule where 12 out of the 18 games played have been
against opponents with a sub .500 record.
But this isn’t discounting the Lakers’ success thus far, as
the Lakers’ record is a clear indication that they have been taking care of
business and winning the games they are supposed to, which is what you want to
see in an NBA Finals contender.
In addition, even though the schedule has been pretty easy
thus far, the team has beaten some tough competition within that, such as the
Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, and Utah Jazz, all of whom are squarely in the
playoff hunt.
However, the Lakers are about to start a brutal December
schedule, where twelve out of the fourteen will be against playoff contenders,
but thanks to their strong record, the team is in a good position to maintain a
foothold in the West.
2.) Defense first mentality to start the season
For most teams heading into a new season, there are a
number of things that they have to contend with. Whether it be a new coach
installing his scheme, or newly acquired players developing chemistry with one
another, these things take time to work out.
The Lakers had to contend with both of these things, as
they had a new head coach in Frank Vogel and virtually an entirely new team via
free agency and trade. While the offensive issues manifested themselves early
for the Lakers, the defense has been the thing keeping them in many games,
especially early in the season.
From the jump, the team has been an elite defensive unit
and has maintained that dominance so far, staying in the top 3 in both
defensive efficiency and net rating. However, the Lakers’ success on the
defensive end shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, as Vogel was the man
behind those 2010s Pacers teams that gave LeBron’s Heat the biggest challenge
during their four-year run.
With a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in Anthony
Davis, and solid perimeter defenders in Danny Green, Avery Bradley, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Vogel once again has the personnel
to make his impact on the defensive end.
1.)
Contributions across the board
A team is the
sum of its parts and this is definitely the case when it comes to how the
Lakers are sitting with an 18-3 record.
Generally
speaking, a team’s success lives and dies with the performance of the best
player(s). But the Lakers, so far, have had different players on the roster
step up for different games, in addition to the consistent dominance of LeBron
James and Anthony Davis.
Basically every
player on the team has had made a game-changing play at one point or another.
Whether it was Danny Green’s game-tying 3-pointer against the Dallas Mavericks
or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s clutch threes against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Don’t
forget Dwight
Howard‘s throwback game against the Charlotte Hornets where he dropped 16
points and 10 rebounds with four blocks on 8-of-8 shooting from the field.
Not to say that
other teams don’t have similar contributions from role players, but it’s been
refreshing not having to watch James and Davis carry this team from start to
finish every single game.
The bottom line
is that when one player isn’t feeling it that night, the Lakers have someone
else who shoulders the load and makes up for it, which has been absolutely
essential for the Lakers’ successful start to the season.