TLDR: Wrote a program that parses the website popcornmachine.netfor games, aggregates +/- and minutes for specific lineups.
Observations:
The Reaves-Reddish-Bron-Rui-Wood lineup saved us last night. I’m going to rewatch that six minute stretch and do a possession by possession and analyze the specific contributions. Upon the first watch, I really noticed Rui’s activity in getting steals and playing unselfishly.
Reaves and LeBron have such a good two man game, I really wish we started him instead of Dlo, and really ran two man action with him and LeBron, him and AD, or the three of them in like a double-drag or something. Our ideal offensive structure should be Reaves, LeBron, and AD at the top of the key running action, with two shooters spacing the floor in each corner.
AD still looked like he’s injured. I really hope he can get back in shape soon, because his athelticism and activity is really what single-handedly carries our defense. There was a stretch in the beginnign of the third when LeBron was kinda trying, but for the most part, our defense lives and dies with Anthony Davis. That is also supposed to be our identity, so when AD is off, our team as a whole is off. Ideally, we don’t need LeBron to go superhuman to win games, we should hang our hat on the defensive end, since we have the best defensive player in basketball.
Hopes:
At the start of the season I was really advocating for Rui Hachimura to start over Jarred Vanderbilt in that froncourt position alongside LeBron and AD. I never liked Prince there, I would prefer to slot him at the 2 and still start games though. Throughout the period in which Rui was out, I really liked Wood in that position next to LeBron and AD. However, I am really hoping that Vanderbilt clears his re-evalution and can start in that position again. AD is the best rim protector in the world, and is versatile enough such that he has no weaknesses to be exploited. When he’s locked in, LeBron is still one of the best help defenders in the league. The ideal player to fit alongside them defensively is Vanderbilt, a tall, versatile defender at the point of attack. He is also a great rebounder, offensively and defensively, which would fix a lot of our issues there. He can also help in our transition defense with his energy and hustle. Last postseason they were looking like the best defensive frontcourt trio in a long time. https://www.reddit.com/r/lakers/comments/137tgzs/lakers_defensive_frontcourt_of_bronadvando_might/
However, the concern that I had over the summer is the negative spacing that Vanderbilt’s prescence creates. I detailed how teams exploit this here: https://www.reddit.com/r/lakers/comments/11znu2t/the_vanderbilt_dilemma/
I think this sub is far too optimistic as to how much Vanderbilt’s jump shot can improve (I would love to be wrong). However, even if his jump shot never changes, at this point I think it’s better to double down on our strength, and just be impossible to score and rebound against, then to be jack of all trades, master of none. Starting Reaves-Prince-Vando-LeBron-AD is in my opinion the way to move forward.