Austin Reaves, who averaged 23.3 points during the regular season, went just 3-for-16 in Game 1.
The Los Angeles Lakers understand the dilemma they face in their Western Conference semifinals series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Lakers need to be at or near their best to win a game in the series. The defending champion Thunder do not.
That played out in Game 1 with the Thunder keeping a mostly safe distance between themselves and the Lakers on the scoreboard before eventually pulling away for a 108-90 victory.
The Lakers were never quite out of it until the fourth, but weren’t able to make it a tighter contest before then.
Here are three things to watch in Game 2 on Thursday (9:30 p.m. ET, Prime Video):
1. Reaves’ scoring is necessary for Lakers
Game 1 was Reaves’ third game back since straining his oblique muscles against the Thunder on April 2, so he’s working his way back into game form. Plus, he took a punishing hit to the chest in the series opener.
Still, Reaves’ 3-for-16 shooting performance from the field (including 0-for-5 on 3-pointers) for eight points plus four turnovers will not help the Lakers win a game.
It’s not on one player, and Luka Dončić sidelined with a strained left hamstring, hurts the Lakers, but they are better when Reaves averages what he did during the regular season: 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds.
“The easy thing is to make more shots,” Reaves said. “I got to my spots multiple times and just missed a couple of easy shots. For the most part, got to limit the turnovers. They pressure the ball really well and just have to give us an opportunity to get a shot up on every possession.”
Said Thunder coach Mark Daigneault: “With him, you just can’t give him a lot of cracks. If you give him easy stuff, he’s able to really burn you. And I thought we did a nice job of keeping him at bay, not fouling him too much and being in good position on him and just making him earn everything.”
2. Who else can produce for the Lakers?
LeBron James had 27 points, six assists and four rebounds, Rui Hachimura scored 18 points, and Deandre Ayton had 10 points and 12 rebounds. But the rest of the Lakers shot just 11-for-43 from the field.
Marcus Smart added 12 points but was just 4-for-15.
Yes, it’s a matter of making shots. But the opponent has a role to play in a team’s shot selection and shot quality, and the Thunder had the best regular-season defense, allowing 106.5 points per 100 possessions. It’s not easy to score against them.
Jarred Vanderbilt sustained an injury to the small finger on his right (non-shooting) hand, adding to the Lakers’ depth issues.
Game 1 was the third consecutive game in which the Lakers scored fewer than 100 points. They can use more of Luke Kennard’s 3-point shooting, and the message from Lakers coach JJ Redick to Kennard: Keep shooting. The Lakers also need better efficiency from Smart and Reaves.
“We can score the ball. We’re going to score the ball,” Smart said. “Just got to do it. … I’ve got to be better. It starts with me. I take full accountability for it. I know I’m not the reason we lost, but I feel I could have gave more.”
3. A different Gilgeous-Alexander in Game 2
The bad news for Oklahoma City? Gilgeous-Alexander scored 18 points (13 below his season average) and committed seven turnovers (five more than his season average). The good news? The Thunder still won, and they don’t expect the 2024-25 Kia MVP – a finalist for the award again this season – to have another game like that.
“I was loose with the ball, had a lot of turnovers,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “That goes to the rust and not playing for a little bit. They’re obviously very aggressive. I feel for most of the night we got great looks.”
Just like they did against Houston’s Kevin Durant in the first round, the Lakers sent double teams at Gilgeous-Alexander to get the basketball out of his hands.
It took time for Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder to adjust, but they did. Chet Holmgren had 24 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks, and nine players scored at least five points, including reserve Jared McCain (12 points on four 3-pointers).
The Thunder’s depth makes it possible for their main star to have an “off game” and still win a playoff game by 18.
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Jeff Zillgitt has covered the NBA since 2008. You can email him at jzillgitt@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.
