OKLAHOMA CITY — Every Lakers player who was asked Tuesday about their upcoming game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the first of two matchups in six days against the defending champions, provided answers with clear knowledge of the challenge ahead.
Forward Jake LaRavia agreed that Thursday night’s game was “100%” a measuring-stick game for the Lakers, currently the third-place team in the Western Conference.
“I feel like we’ve been in a couple playoff games here recently,” said LaRavia, who scored 14 points in the Lakers’ 127-113 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night. “This is obviously going to be another one.”
Forward Rui Hachimura said games against the first-place Thunder are an opportunity, especially considering the Lakers lost to them, 119-110, on Feb. 9 (though neither Luka Doncic or Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played in that game). Since then, the Lakers have gone 24-6.
“They’re the championship team,” Hachimura said. “It’s gonna be a good test for us.”
Lakers coach JJ Redick said playing the Thunder on Thursday, and again Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena, provides them a chance to build their “playoff mentality.”
“They’re the world champions,” Redick said. “They’re the best team in basketball, so it’s a great opportunity for us to get better.”
Last year, when the Lakers met the Thunder for early April games, the franchises were in a fairly similar position.
The Thunder were the No. 1 seed in the West, while the Lakers were 17 games behind Oklahoma City, and ultimately finished as the third seed heading into the postseason. In the first of two games in Oklahoma City, the Lakers trounced the Thunder by 27 points. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said before Thursday’s game that when you play playoff-level teams before the postseason, such as the Lakers last year, there are going to be times when you get “bloodied up.”
“Those games are highly relevant,” Daigneault said. “It’s really about how you respond to that and what you can learn from that and apply that forward.”
Two days later, the Thunder beat the Lakers by 16 points with Gilgeous-Alexander pouring in 42 points and Doncic ejected in the fourth quarter.
By defensive rating, the Thunder have the most efficient defense in the NBA, allowing just 106.3 points per 100 possessions which is 2.5 points fewer than any other team in the league.
By net rating, the difference between offensive and defensive rating, the Thunder are also 2.5 points ahead of any other team in the category. And leading the team up and down the court is Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning league MVP and a leading candidate to win the award again.
“I think they’ve done a great job, going back probably five years now,” Redick said. “It takes time but they’ve really built an identity of who they are and they play to that style and whether they go nine [players] deep or 12 deep in a game, they’re going to play to that style.”
SMART ‘COULD’ PLAY AGAINST DALLAS
Veteran guard Marcus Smart, who did not play against Oklahoma City on Thursday, returned to the court to work out on Thursday morning and could play against the Dallas Mavericks – his hometown team – on Sunday.
Smart has missed the past six games since the Lakers beat the Orlando Magic during their recent road trip, and is nursing a right ankle contusion, among other bumps and bruises.
