The Los Angeles Lakers find themselves in a deep 0-2 series hole against the Oklahoma City Thunder as the action shifts back to Los Angeles. The primary issue isn’t defending MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — it’s the complete collapse when he’s on the bench.
Over 33 minutes without Gilgeous-Alexander on the floor, the Thunder have outscored the Lakers by 22 points. In Game 1, the Thunder were plus-9 during his 13 minutes of rest. In Game 2, during his 20 minutes on the bench, a plus-13 margin was built. Across both games, Oklahoma City has a net rating of plus-14 in the 63 minutes Gilgeous-Alexander is on the court. Lakers head coach JJ Redick admitted, “We got hammered 32-14 in non-SGA minutes. Seven turnovers, 14 free throws for them. We’ve got to adjust the lineup.”
Rui Hachimura pointed to a lack of focus: “When he sits, we relax. Those guys can play. We can’t make small mistakes.” After Gilgeous-Alexander picked up his fourth foul in the third quarter of Game 2, the Thunder went on a 32-14 run over the next 10 and a half minutes, taking an 18-point lead in the quarter. Oklahoma City exploited mismatches created by Lakers switches, grabbing nine offensive rebounds that turned into 17 second-chance points. LeBron James emphasized, “We had good initial defense, but we have to box out. We can’t let Chet get offensive boards, get to the free-throw line, or put back shots.”
With Games 3 and 4 set for Saturday and Monday in Los Angeles, the Lakers are facing elimination. A loss in either game would put them in a 3-0 hole, a deficit no team in NBA playoff history has ever overcome.
