The story surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers has been the same for a couple of months now. They appear to be an elite offensive team capable of scoring at will thanks to a balanced attack, but the defense largely rests on the shoulders of the elite Anthony Davis, who is in contention yet again for Defensive Player of the Year, although he is once again unlikely to win the award.
And while the offensive-heavy Lakers have been the story since the team began its turnaround back in February, recent stats suggest that their defense may be having its own late-season push. Over their last 10 games — a 9-1 stretch for the Lakers — L.A. has the No. 5 ranked defense in the NBA. They rank fourth over their last five games.
Davis is no longer having to pull the entire weight of the defense, and while the return of the defensive-minded Gabe Vincent has helped, it has been a collective effort from Austin Reaves to LeBron James and everyone in between. That’s why Davis believes the Lakers are nearing where they want to be defensively as a team.
“We really close. We’re covering for each other, we’re talking,” Davis said. “Obviously, we’re missing Vando. I’m not sure when his return is, but AR is taking on a lot of big matchups. We’re confident as a defense. … We’re all stepping up defensively just to cover for the big piece that we are missing, but I think we are on the string right now defensively.”
The Lakers have not looked this good defensively all season long. And it comes at a perfect time with the Play-In Tournament nearing. While the Lakers offense was bordering on elite, it was becoming clear that their style of play eas not going to translate to playoff success. Now, they are finally playing a brand of basketball that can win games, and even series’, in the postseason.
In their final four games of the regular season, they are hopeful to keep that up and go into the Playoffs with as much momentum on their side as possible.
Anthony Davis: Lakers are having fun
Los Angeles came home after going 5-1 on their road trip and faced another tough Eastern Conference opponent in Cleveland. However, the Lakers took care of their business and were able to make it four straight wins and, more importantly, moved up to the No. 8 seed.
Davis sealed the win for L.A. in the fourth quarter because he came up big defensively. Davis has been dominant this season and looks like someone who’s ready for postseason basketball.
When explaining the team’s turnaround, Davis said the Lakers are enjoying playing together