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  1. FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

    Today’s highlights:

    Quick look at the Western Conference race

    Lakers point differential and Four Factors check

    Unusual shot profile and how sustainable is the hot shooting?

    Can this be a top 5 offense?

    Is average, passable defense the ceiling for this group?

    Offense is defense: the turnover problem

    Need for speed and transition deficit

    Look at the future: the fifth starter and the problematic Ayton–Hachimura pairing

    …

    8-Look at the future: the fifth starter and the problematic Ayton–Hachimura pairing

    Chart context: Before getting into lineup combinations and numbers, it’s important to note that the possession totals are still very small and should be viewed with a great deal of skepticism. A few negative stints can heavily skew the current lineup data, so this and other context need to be kept in mind when analyzing it.

    Now, what the lineup data does not erase is the doubt about whether the Lakers have truly found their answer to the question of who the fifth starter should be once James returns. I’m not even sure that dilemma exists for Redick and the coaching staff, given Hachimura’s history and preference as a starter, along with his undeniably crucial contributions at the start of the season. Also, the starting five featuring Dončić, Reaves, James, Hachimura, and Ayton is a unit with five good-to-great offensive players, three playmakers, and two elite finishers, making it potentially the most potent attack in the league.

    But the ultimate lineup should strike a balance between offense and defense, and so far, the data for the Ayton–Hachimura pairing on the defensive end has been underwhelming. Ayton and Hachimura share the same positive defensive trait — strength — but neither is an exceptional athlete, and neither excels in positioning, motor, or defensive decision-making. Lineups featuring both players allow an unsustainably high number of corner threes and don’t protect the rim well, making them the main culprits behind the structural problems I highlighted earlier.

    Starting both, along with James, also squeezes out any room for a true point-of-attack defender in the starting unit, which is another problem. James’s injury has delayed the decision on how to address these challenges, but once he returns, they will become a major talking point and certainly an area for future analysis.

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