The Lakers (3-1) are back in San Francisco to face the Warriors (1-3) in Game 5 of their Round 2 Western Conference playoff series. The game tips at 7:00 p.m. on ESPN and 710 ESPN radio.
Below are three things to know ahead of the matchup:
GAME IV
The opportunity behind Lonnie Walker IV’s massive, memory-making fourth quarter to key LAL’s pivotal comeback win over Golden State on Monday night actually started in the fourth quarter of Game 2.
With the Lakers trailing by 24 points entering the fourth quarter of that road game in San Francisco, Darvin Ham pulled his starters, with Walker IV getting his number called.
Before we get there … looking back upon his season as a whole, it was a challenging one for Walker IV. A key offseason acquisition, he entered the season as the starter, a role he fulfilled until Dec. 28, 32 games later. His best month was November, when he averaged 18.0 points per game on 51.0 percent FG’s and 44.1% 3’s, while playing credible defense. He started to cool off in December (42.1% FG’s), and eventually had some knee tendinitis that contributed to him sitting for most of January, and he then played limited bench minutes prior to the trade deadline.
Then the Lakers brought in not just D’Angelo Russell at a guard spot, but also Malik Beasley, who took minutes that might have gone to Walker IV. LAL experienced team success right away, so there was less of a reason to change things up. But throughout that time, Walker IV stayed positive, kept working, and played well when called upon, most notably in a key home game against OKC on March 24, when he hit 7 of 12 FG’s and four triples towards 20 points in a 5-point win.
In the playoffs, Walker IV played only the final 30 seconds of Games 1 and 2, before getting five minutes at the end of Game 5, and nine at the end of a 40-point win in the deciding Game 6.
Which brings us back to garbage time in Game 2. Instead of just go through the motions, Walker IV attacked. He was decisive. He was sharp. He put up eight shots in 12 minutes, hitting four, including a triple, adding a steal and an assist ahead of a 127-100 final whistle.
Ham was watching. In Game 3, it was Walker IV that found himself playing the reserve minutes that had been going to Troy Brown Jr., who’d totaled only 11 total points in Round 1.
Walker IV was up for it from his first touch, as he scored 12 points on 4 of 6 FG’s (two triples) plus four boards, two steals and one block in 24 minutes.
Then came Game IV. For whatever reason, the ball didn’t find him in the first three quarters, as he focused on defense, and took zero shots in 15 minutes, while notching two assists and a steal. Then came the fourth quarter, and that’s now a part of Lakers playoff history that will only grow if they’re able to close out the Warriors.
ADJUSTMENT OLYMPICS
In a good playoff series, the coaching staffs are facing off just like the players, but that’s a battle that occurs behind the scenes, until we get to dissect it during and after games. For example, in Game 4, Darvin Ham and his coaches surely noticed the adjustment Steve Kerr made from Game 3, as they had Stephen Curry high on the floor, calling for ball screens from a new starter, Gary Payton II. GPII has the capability of rolling to the rim and getting behind Anthony Davis, whereas in the previous game, Davis was on JaMychal Green, who was just spreading out to the 3-point line.
So, do they coaches make an adjustment within the course of that game? At halftime? Do they wait until after the game and really drill what that adjustment is going to be prior to the next game?
A similar situation arose after Game 2, when the Warriors shifted from their Game 1 style – running their typical offense – to a much heavier diet of Curry, keyed by Draymond Green screens higher on the court. That helped them win Game 2, a game they absolutely had to have, and Ham opted to save a major adjustment for Game 3. And in Game 3, boosted by a different defensive coverage, the Lakers counterpunched – by swapping Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt in the starting lineup to change how high they picked up Curry and allow Davis to involve himself differently – to dominate that contest, one they’d lead 86-68 after three quarters.
In short, the Warriors want Anthony Davis away from the rim, and the Lakers want him closer to it, but not too close so that he can’t get out specifically to impact Curry.
Game 5 provides an opportunity for Ham to counter the change Kerr provided in Game 4, and thus, force the Warriors to respond on the spot.
It certainly isn’t checkers out there!
LEBRON ON OFFENSE
What LeBron James is doing in Year 20 is totally unprecedented, as we’ve been over before. Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was even playing actual NBA minutes in the playoffs at that point of a career that almost no players even get to.
It’s no surprise that LeBron’s counting stat production has dipped some from previous playoff runs; he’s averaging 22.6 points on 47.0 percent shooting, with 5.2 assists, all towards the bottom of his career playoff totals. And yet, his 10.2 rebounds are the third-highest of his playoff career, and his 1.3 blocks tie for second. He continues to dissect opposing game plans and plays, and lead the Lakers from a mental standpoint, if perhaps picking his spots as to when to really take over – like in crunch time and OT of Game 4 vs. Memphis.
Offensively, the one thing that’s evaded him for much of the postseason is his 3-point shot.
He’s converted only 16 of his 70 attempts, a career-low 22.9% hit rate. On the other hand, he’s been terrific from two-point territory, hitting 71 of 115 attempts, for a 61.7 percent clip that trails only Phoenix’s Devin Booker (65.2%) for players attempting a minimum of 75 shots.
LeBron shot 37.0 percent from three in 2019-20 in the playoffs, and 37.5 percent the next season; if he can get even a bit closer to average, that would provide a big boost to a Lakers offense that’s currently 10th in the playoffs in efficiency.
That said, LeBron’s been a key part of a playoff defense that ranks No. 1, with a 105.3 rating, an impressive number, as Cleveland led the NBA in the regular season with a 109.9 mark.