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This year's Lakers will NOT share the Same Fate as LAST YEAR'S Lakers.
And here are 4 CONCRETE Reasons why.
...
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All right, welcome everybody to the Lakers Legacy podcast
where RIP and condolences to all the dookies
all around the world for the pure madness
that was their march.
Particularly Lakers dookies like JJ Reddick and Luke Connard,
what an ending and what a loss to Dan Hurley
and the Yukon Huskies.
But you know what, something tells me
that Reddick and Connard will get over
their Alma Mater's tragic last second loss
because they frankly got bigger fish to fry
after maddenessing their own march this past month
with the Lakers by going 13 and 2 in their last 15 games.
And now the playoffs await in just two weeks.
I'm your host Jonathan Hernandez
and your Los Angeles Lakers are now 48 and 26.
22 games above 500 with just eight games left to go
till the start of their official road to number 18.
And though Luca Doncic will be missing the next game
due to suspension, the vibes are still higher
than they've ever been
and the team looks more locked in than ever.
And in today's episode, we are going to go over
concrete reasons why this year's Lakers team
will have a different, more positive fate than last year's team.
And while some of the reasons may seem obvious,
I just wanted to make sure to run through this exercise
so that we could clearly lay everything out on the table
and clearly articulate why I don't think we as Lakers fans
should be walking into this year's playoffs
with too much lingering PTSD from last season.
So I've got about four reasons that I want to go over
with you guys today.
But before we get to that, if I could please ask you guys
to like this video, comment down below
and most importantly hit subscribe.
I would greatly appreciate it.
Also, please consider becoming a member
to this Lakers Legacy YouTube channel
where you will get access to my members' exclusive videos
including some nitty gritty cap space stuff as well.
All right, with that said, let's get into my four reasons
why this year's Lakers are different.
Different than last year's Lakers
and why I think they will have a better fairing
in the playoffs and make it past at least the first round.
All right, so let's get into those four reasons right now
and let's start with number one,
the Lakers Western Conference Competition this year.
Now obviously the same teams exist in the West,
but I think things have changed in certain respects
and I actually think if you dissect each and every team
in the Western Conference this year,
I think the Lakers Western Conference Competition
has actually gotten weaker.
So let's kind of run through some of the Lakers'
potential opponents in the first round
and even the second round.
Let's start with the Houston Rockets.
The Rockets particularly recently have been an absolute mess.
The vibes unlike the Lakers have never been more sour.
They just suffered that crazy over time loss
where they had a double digit lead
and still lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, I believe.
They seem absolutely screwed without a true point guard.
They have missed Fred Van Vleet the entire year,
reached shepherd while he has been good
and they have been relatively good when he has started
is still not a veteran point guard
that you need to take that team over the top.
Kevin Durant has been overtaxed
and you almost start to wonder
whether the Dylan Brooks KD swap was worth it
for the culture and vibes alone.
This season the Lakers are two and one
versus the Houston Rockets
and obviously the last two games being
those back-to-back games in Houston
where the Rockets just could not figure out
the Lakers trapping zone defense on Kevin Durant
and for the first time in the last few seasons
the Lakers looked like the more physical and athletic team
all because the Rockets had no true offensive cohesion
cohesion and offensive creation.
So number one, I think the Rockets are weaker
and if the Lakers face off against the Rockets
I don't think the Lakers should be too scared.
Now let's move on to the Denver Nuggets.
I know we always get a lot of PTSD with this one,
which makes sense.
They have terrorized us for multiple seasons
when we had Anthony Davis
but I do think we have to sort of separate ourselves
from the AD era, which is crazy and hard to do
because last season we still had AD
for the first half of the year
but the Denver Nuggets,
while I don't necessarily think that they got weaker per se
I do think that our matchup with the Nuggets
since Luca has joined the team
has been pretty vastly different
because the Luka Lakers, whenever we face
Yokeach and the Nuggets
the Luka Lakers are a different beast
and with Luca in tow
it's almost like we have a Yokeach of our own
but at the wing position to throw at Denver
and all of a sudden the Nuggets have this crazy riddle
that they have to solve on our end.
And so far since the Luka don't should trade
the Lakers are four and two in their last six games
versus Denver and Luca himself is four and one.
The only other Lakers loss was that one on the road
when both brawn and Luca sat last season
and if you remember Austin and Dalton
and randomly shake Milton band it together
and almost beat the Nuggets themselves,
short-handed and that was the game where Austin and DK
I think both put up 30 plus points
but anyways the Lakers are four and two
in their last six games versus Denver
Luca himself is four and one
and so this year I'm a little bit more confident
in a Denver Nuggets matchup in the first round
even though again it still does strike fear into my heart
for obvious reasons but I think once we get over
sort of like the initial PTSD and shock
I think Lakers fans will come to realize that
I don't know with Luca Donchich
this might be a matchup we actually want
especially if we take into account the last few games
where we have looked like the more rabid and athletic team
against the Nuggets and have looked more offensively cohesive
than them as well
all right so that's the Denver Nuggets
that's the Houston Rockets
next up let's talk about the Minnesota Timberwolves
kind of like the Rockets I feel like they've been
a very lost and messy team this year
that's been searching for their own identity
Mike Connellese a year older
they have really missed Nikhil Alexander Walker
Anthony Edwards in this latter stretch of the season
has been pretty banged up
Luca Donchich is actually 4 and 0
versus the Wolves in the regular season
since he's joined the Lakers
and this year the Lakers swept their season series
with the Wolves 3 and 0
and while I know we lost to the Wolves in the playoffs
one for last season
we do have to remember that one
the Wolves had Nikhil Alexander Walker
two, Luca wasn't as healthy and well conditioned
as he was now
I mean that we were still talking about you know
Luca making his way back from his injury
and honestly he was not in shape
and then on top of that
Luca was had a stomach virus
he was throwing up at half time in game three
so who knows how that series would have gone
if the Lakers hadn't dropped game three
and had a truly healthy Luca
because LeBron was going off in that game
and then on top of all of that
Austin Reeves was also super banged up in that playoff series
we just didn't find out about his
what he was dealing with footwise
after that series had already concluded
and so this season the Timber Wolves
I don't know
obviously there will be PTSD from having to face them again
just because of how last year's series ended
but I don't think Lakers fans should be that afraid either
because one, we have swept and owned the Timber Wolves this season
and two, there are very tangible reasons
why the Timber Wolves have struggled
and I think those reasons will persist
if we face them in the first round in the playoffs
and then if the Lakers are able to make it to the second round
which I anticipate they will based off of the reasons
that I just laid out
in the second round the Lakers will likely face off
against the San Antonio Spurs
and while Wemba Nyama is obviously the alien monster
that we all fear
if there was ever any year to beat Wemba before
he absolutely goes Super Saiyan
it's this year, his first year in the playoffs
because I think we can take advantage of the Spurs
Ronis, their youth, their inexperience
they are a very green team
despite having guys like Deer and Fox and Harrison Barnes
they have a young head coach
and so yeah, even though the Spurs clearly have more talent
they have more athleticism, they have more youth
than the Lakers team
and it's always a possibility that Wemba Nyama
just goes destroyer of all worlds
and it won't matter
but I think when it comes to the tactical schema things
and when JJ Reddick has time to read out a seven game series
and you've got Luca LeBron AR on our side
I just think the Lakers have a pretty good shot
in the second round to potentially surpass the Spurs
at least for this year
just because it'll be their first outing in the playoffs
so yeah, that's my reasoning for why I think the Lakers
will have a more fruitful time in the playoffs
and at least make it past the first round
and even the second round if they face a team like the Spurs
now if we face the Oklahoma City Thunder
then yeah, you know, at that point that's when I think
the our momentum stops
because to me, okay, C seems inevitable
and I don't think we have a good shot against them
for all the obvious reasons
this season we are 0 and 2 against the Thunder
and yeah, right now they just seem insurmountable
with their stable of athletes
my only hope is that Luca a year or two ago
literally had the keys and the equation to beat this team
during his finals run with the Dallas Mavericks
and I know he had a different team around him back then
and the Oklahoma City Thunder were a little different as well
because they hadn't yet gotten Isaiah Hardenstein
but Luca knows what it feels like
to beat this OKC Thunder team
so at least he doesn't have the trauma of having lost two,
you know, this seemingly invincible team
and that was actually the season
before they became champions
but anyways, the West competition is weaker
that's reason number one for why I think the Lakers
have a good shot to rewrite their history this season
all right, let's talk about reason number two
the Lakers big three stars aligning
I think each and every one of our stars
have their own sort of individual agendas going on
but they all seem to sort of coalesce with one another
to hopefully snowball the Lakers into just this wave of momentum
that catches fire and sparks a great run for the Lakers
I mean, Luca Doncic, what more can you say about this guy?
He is having a generational run in the last 15 games
13 and 2 record, Luca's averaging 37.2 points per game
8.2 rebounds per game
7.1 assists per game
leading the Lakers in steals 2.3 steals per game
he's first in points, fourth in assists, first in steals
in the NBA during that time span
he has been on a generational tear
that not many people have ever seen if at all
he's putting up numbers that this Lakers franchise
has never seen
numbers Kobe has never even produced
so I mean, we all know that the revenge bod, revenge tour, Luca
it hit a rough patch in the middle there
where he got a little bit banged up during the winter seasons
but he's come back better than ever in the new year
and it doesn't look like anything
or anyone is gonna slow him down
so there's Luca Doncic, the obvious one
we move on to Austin Reeves
who somehow has surpassed what he did last season
at least in the regular season
he bulked up over the offseason
focused on getting stronger
being able to finish through contact
and now he's putting up the most efficient season
for a guard in Lakers history
and as far as his career
if you look at Austin Reeves entire career
Austin actually has the highest career
true shooting percentage by a guard in NBA history
with a 63% true shooting percentage
and this year Austin's averaging 23.6 points
4.7 rebounds, 5.5 assists
on 49% from the field, 36% from three
super efficient numbers
and he has once again made another leap
into all star consideration territory
and for Austin himself
I know he wants to prove the doubters wrong
with regards to his playoff troubles
with physicality and length
and he wants to prove that the reason
why he faltered against the wolves last season
was because he had a foot injury that he was dealing with
so Austin has a lot to prove
he's got a chip on his shoulder
and for himself he's even made another growth jump
from last season when I thought 25 for Austin was
as good as it got.
Now we move on to LeBron James, the goat 41 years old
who's doing unprecedented things at 41
and is literally breaking new records every time
he steps out onto the court
and even just takes one dribble
and now we've got a LeBron who's
bought into a supporting role as the third guy
and is willing to lift up and prop up Luca and Austin
and it just so happens
LeBron is doing what LeBron normally does
at this time of the year and locking in at both ends
I mean this is the perfect combination of things
that could have happened for each of our individual big three
but all of their individual agendas
and all of their individual chips on their shoulders
they are aligning in such a way that
I mean you see it on the court
you see it off the court with the advanced net rating numbers
you see it off the court with regards to their chemistry
the big three has never looked this good
and these three players in their own lanes
but also in their corresponding lanes together
I mean it just feels like we're on a very good trajectory
of positive momentum with our big three
and they've all individually improved
throughout the course of this season in their own ways
and yeah I don't know I'd be afraid to face
this big three heading into the playoffs
and you know for LeBron the other thing working for LeBron
in LeBron's favor is the last stand protocol
this could literally be and might be his last playoff run
as a Laker how does LeBron want to go out
you know I know he's gonna go
I know he's gonna want to go down swinging
so I am very excited to see what
bought in LeBron as the supporting cast player
as the prime dream on green slash Aaron Gordon
slash Andre E. Godala third guy looks like in the playoffs
because it could be a special farewell tour
for LeBron as it pertains to donning the purple and gold
in the playoffs and so I'll be grabbing my popcorn
and chomp in a way as I watch LeBron James potential
final run as a Laker so reason number two
why I think things will be different
the big three look different and it's a good different
and you know you all you only need to point to Luca
our north star to sort of understand why
we should all feel hopeful about this potential playoff run
that we're about to go on not potential playoff run
but this potential run we're about to go on potential
contending run so those are my first two reasons
why I think things will be different this year
but before we get into my last two reasons
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Alright, so we are back.
Let's get into my last two reasons for why I think the Lakers season will be different.
Sorry, my voice just cracked.
Just to recap, number one, weaker Western Conference, number two, Luca and the big three stars
aligning.
Let's move on to number three and let's talk about better depth and supporting cast
on the Lakers end.
So I think this one is pretty obvious, but let's just run through the Lakers roster and
compare it to what we had last season and let me actually bring up last year's playoff
roster.
So let me just really quickly do a rundown of who we had last season.
Obviously we had Luca, we had Dorian Finney Smith, Jordan Goodwin, Rui Hachimura, Jackson
Hayes, LeBron James, Bronnie James, Maxi Cleaver, although he only played in that final game
for like five minutes, Dalton Connect, Alex Len, who could forget Alex Len, shake Milton,
Marquif Morris, Austin Reeves, Jared Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent.
And so that was our final roster heading into the playoffs last season and actually the
last game against the wolves, like I think only eight guys played because players like Jackson
Hayes and Jared Vanderbilt were not even in the rotation anymore and Reddit was only using
a few guys.
So this season in contrast, let's just start with the big man first with regards to our supporting
cast.
Last year, we literally only had Jackson Hayes and Alex Len.
And Reddit ended up abandoning Hayes very early in that Minnesota game.
Obviously Hayes is culpable for why Reddit had to abandon him, but I just felt like
Reddit gave up on him too early and evidence by the fact that Reddit actually apologized
to Hayes after how that series went and apologized to him in the off season.
So number one, last season, we only had Jackson Hayes as our viable big man.
This season, even if we still only had Jackson Hayes, I think Hayes has actually improved
in a lot of ways that he was deficient in to close that series against the wolves.
So Hayes has improved.
He's booked up.
He's blocking shots left and right in the last week or so.
And I think he's prepared for whatever is going to come his way this playoffs with regards
to he understands the physicality in the playoffs now and I think he'll be ready.
So Hayes is already just going to be better in and of himself.
And then on top of that, Hayes will be slotted correctly as the back of big man because
this season, we've got Deandre Aitin or shall I say Deandre Capella, who now looks super
locked in for this stretch run.
And so we've got a legitimate starting center ahead of Jackson Hayes, who's still doing
the rebounding stuff, still blocking shots here and there, but giving the Lakers a different
look offensively as a pick and roll partner and someone who actually screens better than
Jackson Hayes.
And so now we've got two viable options at center.
And then on top of that, we even have a third option in a semi-healthier Maxi Cleba.
He has been dealing with this back thing the last two weeks or so, but it does seem
like he's at the very least healthier than last year's version when he was only able
to play in the last game for five minutes in a last case scenario break, last in case
of emergency desperation situation for JJ Reddick.
Cleba has actually played rotation minutes for us throughout the season.
And so if his number is called upon again, I think Cleba will be ready.
And so yeah, our front court in general is just so much more formidable.
That should be our number one thing that we cling on to with regards to us having a way
better supporting cast.
After our front court, then you look at a guy like the Marcus smart, the Marcus smart
X factor because obviously we lost during Fanny Smith.
But in his stead, I feel like Marcus smart has sort of filled the DFS role.
Hopefully he's smaller, but in my opinion, Marcus smart is like the smaller, but stronger
and more offensively versatile version version of DFS.
And again, I don't need to belabor the point with Marcus smart.
Everything he's done for the Lakers, changing our culture, but continuing to scrap on the
floor, hit his threes in timely situations and also play make for us.
These are things that Dory and Fanny Smith can't do with regards to the playmaking and sort
of offensive creation, even though smart has been sort of erratic throughout the season.
The only thing with smart is whether his body can hold up, but I think that's why he's
been resting the last couple of games.
So anyways, we've got the Marcus smart X factor.
And then on top of Marcus smart, I just feel like in general, collectively, we've got
off of the bench more goons and more firepower last season off the bench.
We had guys like Jordan Goodwin, Gabe Vincent, and Jared Vanderbilt.
This year we have goons and buckets, Jake LaRavia.
There's another goon.
We've got a healthier Vando, whether or not reddit wants to deploy him.
We'll see, but there's another goon.
We've got Hayes and Cleba, two goons who have been playing pretty well in different sections
of the season.
And then we've got really hot, she more coming off the bench now.
And he's been a little bit up and down, but I feel like he settled into his role as
that bucket getter and spacer off the bench.
And in some games, he still closes because the Lakers need that small ball five look.
And they need Ruiz, you know, physicality and length at the four or five.
And then on top of that, we got a guy like Luke Canard who sort of knits everything offensively
together.
I mean, you just compare, compare and contrast goodwin, Gabe and Vando to LaRavia, Vando,
Hayes and Cleba, Rui and now Canard.
And it's pretty much no contest.
The Lakers supporting cast and depth is just way more reliable, way more versatile.
And now again, it'll just rest on JJ reddit to actually maximize those players, utilize
them in the right lineups and trust these guys.
I don't think he's going to play all of these players, but I think from one series to
the next, certain guys will have better matchups.
And it's going to be up to JJ reddit to understand, do I use Vando in this series?
Do I use Vando in this game at all?
Is Canard going to be eaten alive defensively and physicality wise in this series?
Can LaRavia stick it if his three point shot is hasn't rounded the corner yet?
So it'll be up to JJ reddit to sort of be the alchemist here.
But with regards to having better pieces to sort of utilize than last season, I mean,
JJ reddit won't have that excuse this year.
Because again, we're slotting guys down who we had to rely on as starters last season
in terms of Jackson Hayes and Rui Hachimura and now they're coming off of the bench.
So way better supporting cast and depth.
I don't think I need a belabor at that point from the front court to the Marcus
Martx factor to the overall collective depth of the bench and overall collective
better defense as well.
All right.
So that is my third reason why just to recap everything.
Again, number one, weaker Western conference, number two, Luca and the big three stars
aligning, number three depth and supporting cast or better depth and supporting cast.
Now we're down to my last reason, number four.
And let's talk about continuity, cohesion and vibes.
So this reason is a little bit more ethereal and intangible.
But I do think this stuff matters for playoff runs, championship runs.
If you want to do anything special, your group sort of has to be special, not only on
the court, but off the court.
And I think this year we've had just speaking to the continuity part first.
This year, this group has been with each other.
A large majority of this group, Sans gave Vincent, has been with each other from the
start since training camp, since working with each other in the off season.
We've got a full year of continuity, cohesion and vibes with much of these players.
Last season, we had a Ragtag group coming out of a very shocking trade that nobody
was really able to catch their bearings with even after it was done.
And so that group was put together midway in such a shocking fashion, admittedly so
from Lucas end as well.
This year, we got a fresh start.
We had these guys, we started the season together from the jump and we banded together
through all of the injuries, through all of the up and downs, through the December portions
of the season when everybody was talking about the Lakers, just being paper tigers
who can't beat good teams.
And then now they've come out of that, like pretty much beating everybody, the bad teams,
the good teams, they've been rolling one of the hottest teams in the NBA.
These players and this group have gone through that journey and that process together.
And I think that experience with one another means a lot.
It means something to a playoff run and knowing that you can get down in a series,
you can get down in a game.
But as you have all season, you can fight back because this group has been a very resilient
group, especially when you consider all of the in and outs that have happened with regards
to the injuries and how many guys have had to step up for one another.
I mean, we've got two games this season when Nick Smith, Jr., a two way guy had to come in
and save the day for the Lakers.
And so I think the belief and the fight for one another is there with this team.
And also they just have a better understanding of one another.
If you want to talk about the actual basketball play and again, as I mentioned at the top,
the vibes have never been higher, winning cures a lot of ills.
But when look at when you when you have a superstar like Luca Donchitch, a generational star,
that the belief has never been higher for the Lakers.
And you can see it being exuded.
You can see that confidence exuded from all of the role players.
It's a huge trickle down effect.
And when you look at again, I'm going to go back to the stars, but you have a generational
young star in Luca Donchitch.
You've got a goat going down swinging.
You've got a scrappy rising star in Austin Reeves who went undrafted just so he could steer
his way to the Lakers.
When you have that as your big three and your leading core, it's easy for everybody to
band together.
But also I just think naturally this group and you've seen it after every single one of
their game winners, it's not really something you can put a finger on.
But this group just vibes together so well.
Their chemistry reminds me so much of the 2020 Lakers championship season, whether it's
Luca Donchitch, you know, having these little squabbles, playful squabbles with Austin Reeves.
And then when Rui Hachimura, LeBron James, continuing to prop up Luca Donchitch, continuing
to prop up Austin Reeves, having him on his podcast, the way that they have all sort of galvanized
around Luca's greatness and galvanized around all of these crazy game winners, I don't know.
I think this is a very special group, regardless of whether or not they win the championship.
Again, I think their experience with one another, their continuity on and off the court, I think
they can squeeze out one or two more wins off of that alone, off of vibes alone.
Because these are these are generational vibes that the team is currently running on.
And when you can actually pair that with the good basketball play that they have been playing
in the last one and a half months or so, that's when you kind of get that lightning
in a bottle sort of moment that advanced net ratings and analytics can't really quantify.
And so, yeah, those are my four reasons why I think this year will be different for the Lakers.
One, weaker Western conference, two Luca Donchitch and the big three stars lining, three better
depth and supporting cast and four lit vibes, baby.
How do you like that analysis?
I guess bonus reason.
I'd say JJ Reddick, you know, I think he'll, I think he kind of lost it last season in the
playoffs versus the Timberwolves.
He kind of panicked whether it was giving up on Hayes too soon and abandoning him too soon
or playing his starters.
The final 24 minutes of a game on the road and not giving them arrest and wearing them out.
I believe that was a game for I feel like JJ Reddick's a coach who
really internalizes from his mistakes and really learns from them.
I think he really digs down deep to understand how and why he failed and tries to make sure he
course corrects in the most productive way possible.
And I think we've seen that throughout the course of this season.
This season, I feel like he has made far more
adept in game adjustments.
He's adapted better within games to what the other team is doing much better.
And at times, we've been the team dictating the course of how
the flow of a game is going rather than the other way around from the late game
ATOs to the late game execution and the Lakers being like one of the best.
If not the best clutch time teams in the NBA all season to the growing
cohesiveness on the defensive end of the floor, the purposeful zone trapped man
on Malgomations, I think JJ Reddick has relied on his big man a lot more and
not solely gone to small ball spacing lineups.
Reddick's obviously still has a lot to learn.
But I mean, a second season on the job, 50 plus wins.
And you have to give JJ Reddick a lot of credit for sort of
generaling this team along this entire season when things could have easily
fallen apart during that December stretch.
So yeah, anyways, I will leave it right there.
Those are my four reasons why I think things will be different for the Lakers
in a very positive way this season.
What are your guys' four reasons?
How far do you think the Lakers can make it in the playoffs?
Let me know in the comments below.
And please remember to like this video, comment down below, and most importantly
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But with that said, thank you for listening.
Thank you for watching.
Go Lakers.
Go go.
This has been Jonathan Hernandez of the Lakers Legacy podcast.
And I will catch you guys next time.
Peace.
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