Welcome in to the first ever Lakers playoff preview on this blog. It's been awhile. I've covered the Lakers' playoff runs from 2011-2013, but not exactly in this capacity to where this blog is at now. They always say the road to a championship is never easy. And the Lakers' are running into a legit first round opponent in their return to the postseason: the Portland Trail Blazers, lead by the explosive Damian Lillard.
I'm going to come clean here first. I rooted for Brooklyn on Thursday. Tough miss by Caris Levert on that one and especially heartbreaking for the 8-0 Phoenix Suns. I rooted for the Grizzlies yesterday. But, this matchup seemed inevitable. The Lakers will be facing off against a team that is better than what they're record and seeding shows.
Though the Lakers took the regular season series over the Blazers 2-1, it wouldn't be a fair assessment considering a lot has happened in the four months since the NBA suspended. Dame, CJ McCollum, Melo, Jusuf Nurkic, this Portland team is a squad that shouldn't be taken lightly. When you look at the Trail Blazers in the bubble, they played with their backs against the wall in every game. While the Lakers were casually strolling through these seeding games, these Blazers were scrapping and clawing to get to the playoffs. Dame Time was a man on a mission, averaging 30 points a game since the restart. They have Nurkic back to strengthen their front court with Hassan Whiteside and Zach Collins. Looking at their games, Terry Stotts has been playing an 8-9 man rotation and it has worked for them. Gary Trent has showed up big in the bubble to provide a spark for Portland's 2nd unit.
From a Lakers standpoint, the defense is going to be a point of emphasis in this series. The backcourt is going to have their hands full with Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. If there's ever a time where Avery Bradley's defensive presence is going to be missed, it's this series. KCP, Danny Green, Caruso, and Dion Waiters are going to get their work in guarding this tandem. However, while Portland's offense is a well-oiled machine, their defense has been suspect throughout the seeding games. And that's something that the Lakers must exploit with LeBron and AD running the show.
Dame going off is inevitable. There's nobody that can defend him when he's on a scoring rampage. But, his efforts won't matter if the Lakers can manage to hold down CJ McCollum, Carmelo Anthony, and everyone else. Melo's presence has given this Portland team a third scoring option outside of their back court. Jusuf Nurkic has been a beast inside. While the Lakers have AD, Javale, and Dwight, we can't underestimate Portland's front court with Nurkic, Collins, and Hassan Whiteside coming off the bench for defense and blocks. They will be Portland's X-Factor alongside Gary Trent Jr. providing a scoring spark off the bench. Onto the Lakers' side, without question, Kyle Kuzma will be the X-Factor from here on out. We need to see Kuz in that lineup with the LBJ-AD duo and possess some consistency in scoring and defense.
The Lakers can't afford to be involved in a shootout with the Trail Blazers, especially when they're this hot. You look at the Lakers' offense during these games, it hasn't been pretty. It looked like they don't have their legs under them. LeBron looked old at times. AD had three good games, but was overly passive during these seeding games. Rotations looked discombobulated when you have Frank Vogel fiddling with what works. The three-point shooting was inconsistent. The Lakers better be sharper and they need to be locked in because this Finals road will be a grinder.
Overall, this matchup has 6-game series written all over it with the potential to be a 7-game series. The Blazers have played more games up to this point and the Lakers must err on the side of caution in the "double-edged sword" of having an extended rest. Like I said, they looked flat at times in the bubble, they can't afford to fall flat as the games do matter now. But, who knows? The Blazers might not have any energy after fighting for their playoff lives throughout. We'll see how this unfolds. Game 1 is on Tuesday. I'll see you guys then and GO LAKERS!
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