FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has put together another solid season in Year 23, though recently has been struggled with minor injuries that have kept him out of the lineup.

James has missed the past few games due to various ailments and was ruled out for the Lakers’ primetime matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Head coach JJ Redick didn’t sound concerned about James’ long-term status, calling him day to day.

“He did his on-court shooting before our film and walkthrough and probably just needs a couple more days,” Redick said before the game. “So he’s still day-to-day, sometimes day-to-day means two days and sometimes it can mean five or six days. He’s day-to-day.”

Redick also acknowledged that it’s touch and go with James as his body at this stage of his career won’t always respond positively to a game.

“We obviously want him in the lineup. When we were kind of approaching this stretch and you see the six games in eight nights and two back-to-backs last week, you never know how his body is gonna respond to a game and how his foot is gonna respond. So it’s not to say I expected him to miss a game, it’s just it wouldn’t have surprised me if he needed a day or two to get his body right. The fact that he had the falls in Denver, he’s trying to ramp up. He wants to be out there and so do we and hopefully he’s back soon.”

The Lakers went on to beat the Timberwolves for their third straight victory without James in the lineup. When Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves play but James doesn’t, the Lakers are now 10-2 on the year.

Redick discussed at length how the Lakers have managed to find success even without James in the lineup.

“I think when all three of those guys are on the court specifically, again, it goes back to the human element. It’s what they’re comfortable doing as basketball players, which, for all three of those guys, one of those guys having scored the most points in NBA history and doing it for 23 years, is to have the ball in his hands. [Luka Doncic] has five First Team All-NBAs, should make another First Team All-NBA this year, is [used] to having the ball in his hands. So the human struggle to want what you want, and AR is ascending to an All-Star level, but the human struggle to want what you want while also having the emotional maturity and recognition that you have someone next to you, it hasn’t been as clean. And I think losing a training camp and losing the start of the year and then kind of losing AR then for a long stretch, I think we’re starting to get it.

“But there’s a clear pecking order when Luka and AR are on the floor together with guys that are low usage players. That’s just the nature of it. And that’s the nature of nearly every Big 3 that’s ever existed. We’re gonna get there. And I think we’ve seen some positive signs, and I know LeBron, he recognizes the importance of having Luka as the engine. All he really wants is to impact winning. Again, I’ve said this now for the past two weeks. We’re gonna get there. We’re gonna get there.”

There’s no denying that Doncic and Reaves are the offensive focal points of Los Angeles’ offense, but James is still a valued member to their schemes on both sides of the floor. While the results haven’t quite been there amongst the “Big 3,” their collective offensive talent and basketball IQ should eventually work in their favor.

LeBron James critical of inconsistent NBA officiating

Besides injuries, another source of frustration for LeBron James is how he and the Lakers have been officiated. Players are often seen arguing with the referees and James didn’t hold back in his criticisms of the inconsistent officiating.

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers’ defense has spent much of the season buried near the bottom of the NBA rankings. Over the third quarter of the season, however, it has quietly become something closer to respectable — and the shift is beginning to show up in the standings.

The latest example came Tuesday night when the Lakers held Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards to the worst shooting performance of his career. Edwards missed 13 of his 15 attempts — a dismal 13.3 percent rate — and helped the Lakers capture a 120-106 win. It was the lowest field goal percentage of the 385 games in which he attempted at least 15 field goals.

The win was the Lakers’ third straight, moving them to 40-25 on the season and pushing them past Minnesota for fourth place in the Western Conference. The two teams could very well meet next month in the playoffs for a seven-game series.

Most importantly, the impressive performance against Edwards and the Timberwolves is a promising sign that the Lakers’ defense has begun stabilizing.

“We’re not gonna be the No. 1 defense in the league,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said Tuesday. “But to be above average, have those two performances against those two teams back-to-back, is really encouraging.”

Two months ago, the Lakers owned the second-worst defense in the league. At one point, they dropped from 18th in defensive efficiency to 29th while going 10-11 in the process.

The problems were widespread. The Lakers just didn’t do anything reasonably well outside of absorb the occasional charge. They ranked 18th in opponent free-throw attempt rate, 19th in steals, 20th in defensive rebounding percentage, 21st in paint points allowed and 23rd in 3-point percentage during the season’s second quarter. Their rim protection ranked 29th.

In this recent stretch, in which they’ve gone 12-9, they improved to 16th in defensive efficiency. Los Angeles made the most important differences in four areas: defending 3s, defending without fouling, defensive rebounding and transition defense.

In the third quarter of the season, the Lakers ranked eighth in fewest 3s allowed per game and ninth in 3-point percentage allowed. Between Jan. 19 and March 5, the Lakers allowed no more than 10 made 3s and went 7-1 in those contests.

Another key improvement has been foul discipline. After fouling significantly more in the second quarter, the Lakers bounced back, ranking third in free-throw attempt rate during the third quarter of the season.

A similar improvement has been made on the glass. In the first quarter of the season, the Lakers ranked seventh in defensive rebound percentage, before slipping to 20th in the second quarter. Over the third quarter of the season, they moved back up to sixth. Part of that improvement has come from Luka Dončić. From Dec. 2 through Jan. 19, Dončić averaged 6.3 rebounds (5.3 defensive) while committing 2.9 personal fouls per game. From Jan. 19 through March 5, he averaged a team-high 8.2 rebounds (7.9 defensive) while cutting his personal fouls to 1.8.

“Probably just effort and communication,” Dončić said about the defensive improvement. “I think communication is very important on the defensive end. And I think we’re talking to each other a lot. So that helps everybody to get to their spots on the defensive end.”

Perhaps the biggest aid to the Lakers’ improved transition defense has been a shift in their approach to the possession battle. The Lakers have dropped off significantly on the offensive glass — going from 19th in offensive rebound percentage in both the first and second quarters of the season to 28th in the third quarter of the season.

Earlier in the season, turnovers were a major issue. The Lakers ranked last in the NBA in turnover percentage through their first 20 games. But that number improved to 18th in the second quarter of the season, and 13th in the third. As a result, the Lakers improved from 18th in fast-break points allowed in the second quarter of the season to eighth.

Against the Timberwolves, the Lakers corralled 14 offensive rebounds, while committing a season-low seven turnovers. Relatedly, the Timberwolves only scored eight fast-break points.

“You know, they’re physical, and a lot of people can get physical defensively, where you grab and you’re held and box-out so that’s not good to run offense and to get good looks and take care of the basketball,” Redick says. “You gotta be physical, which means you gotta get open, you gotta be strong with the basketball, and then the screening stuff is huge. And I thought we did a good job of screening tonight.”

There are still areas of improvement for the Lakers. One primary objective that Redick still has to see get better are the rotations that have a non-center protecting the rim.

“Just the consistency of our low man you know,” Redick said. “We’re one of the worst teams at defending the rim. That’s not on our bigs, that’s on everybody. So we’ve had stretches, I thought, if you look at our good defensive games, our low man’s really active, our low man is giving paint consequences.”

For long stretches Tuesday, the Lakers did exactly that. The mixed coverages against Edwards showed help early and forced Minnesota’s star into difficult shots through the night — a defensive performance that reflected how much this Lakers group has stabilized over the past quarter of the season.

For a team that has spent much of the season near the bottom of the defensive rankings, that progress could go a long way in determining how far the Lakers go this spring. The next test comes Thursday, when the Lakers host the Chicago Bulls.

Rest of NBA going to start fearing facing Lakers in playoffs.

Lakers need to continue with their winning streak tonight against the Bulls. Lakers won 6 of last 7, they are 2nd best in point differential last 2 weeks, 6th best offense, 2nd best defense.Bulls are the worst offense in the NBA since trade deadline. Simons and Ivey are OUT.— Iztok Franko (@iztok_franko) March 12, 2026

JUST IN: The Lakers are now the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. 👀🍿 pic.twitter.com/cdW5x4vils— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 12, 2026

THE LAKERS CAN TAKE SOLE POSSESSION OF 3RD SEED IF THEY WIN TONIGHT 🤯Here’s what Lakers fans should root for tonight ⬇️Lakers BEAT BullsSuns LOSE to PacersNuggets LOSE to Spurs pic.twitter.com/mL0dOc9P89— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) March 12, 2026

If the Lakers beat the Bulls tomorrow they will be the 3rd seed 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/QBP9La0zEy— GoldenKnight (@GoldenKnightGFX) March 12, 2026

Half game between 3 and 6. Suns in 7th, 1.5 behind the pack. Playoff fever in March!

What a cryin’ shame that would be 🙂

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

LOS ANGELES — Of all the things that went right for the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday in their second-straight “best win of the season” performance, what happened when everything was going wrong stood out most.

Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves fired miss after miss, their field-goal percentage hovered around the American voting age, and the Lakers’ offensive rhythm was totally stalled by the Minnesota Timberwolves’ length, physicality and tenacity.

Through all of that, Deandre Ayton was steady.

It’s not the word that’s been connected all that often to the Lakers’ starting center this year. And Tuesday felt like a moment.

After having a strong game Sunday in a win against the New York Knicks, Ayton was the best Laker early Tuesday, as both teams desperately scrapped for points in the first quarter. He attacked rebounds. He hounded the basket. He slammed the ball with force and defended with purpose.

Here was “the lion” the Lakers thought they had earlier this season. Here was the center they didn’t have last season. Here was a real reason to believe that the last two L.A. wins weren’t fluky but more a culmination of a team truly figuring itself out.

With a 120-106 win, the Lakers (40-25) swept the season series against the Timberwolves because they trusted one another to be there when they needed them — in rotations, in shifts and, most importantly, in spirit.

They didn’t necessarily beat Minnesota because of Ayton’s 14 points and 12 rebounds. But there was no way they would’ve won so convincingly without him. Much like the Lakers’ win Sunday against the New York Knicks, this was an entire roster pulling in the same direction with the same intensity and toughness.

They’ve now won six of their last seven games, the two losses before that coming in the final seconds of the fourth quarter. Their defensive effort and intensity across the board have shifted. The vibes and the belief in the roster are growing.

“I think accountability is being held — not more so from coach to player, just person to person,” Reaves told The Athletic. “I’m not saying I’m running around holding people accountable, but if you say something to somebody, it’s not, ‘Throw your hands up in the air.’ It’s not like, ‘Poor pitiful me.’

“It’s, ‘OK, yeah, I’ll do it.’”

On Sunday, Marcus Smart went 1-for-10 from the floor, but it didn’t matter one bit because of the hell he put the Knicks through on the perimeter. He was a plus-27 in that game, despite scoring only five points. On Tuesday, Jake LaRavia missed layups and still soundly affected winning with his hustle and grit, despite his 1-of-7 shooting.

It didn’t matter that Tuesday had to be an incredibly uncomfortable day for Luka Dončić, after his off-court family issues became news. He made just one of his first eight shots, but he stayed composed. His self-control would eventually be rewarded, as Dončić finished with 31 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. The Lakers were 20 points better than Minnesota in his minutes.

It also didn’t matter that Reaves got off to another slow start against a physical defense, something his critics have grabbed hold of as he’s gotten closer to his offseason payday. He made just 1 of 8 in the first half but put the Timberwolves away with 29 second-half points.

Smart again did his part, stepping in to take on Anthony Edwards at full speed to begin the second half with a drawn charge. Rui Hachimura didn’t stop trying to defend Julius Randle, even after he got called the first of his five fouls by having his chin get in the way of a quick elbow.

“Everybody that stepped on the court did an amazing job,” Dončić said. “Everybody fought until the end.”

Even LeBron James, who missed his third consecutive game with foot and hip soreness, the latter happening late in the Lakers’ tight loss in Denver last week, bounded off the bench in his street clothes to meet Luke Kennard after a tough transition bucket with joy all over his face. He undoubtedly was aware of the discussion about his impact on winning after the Lakers beat the Knicks without him. And he didn’t seem even a little bothered that the Lakers were doing it again against Minnesota.

“That’s real,” Reaves said of that reaction.

Pregame, head coach JJ Redick talked about the Lakers’ balance issues that tend to show up more when they play with a “big three” instead of just two.

“When all three of those guys are on the court specifically, I think it goes back to the human element,” Redick said. “It’s what they’re comfortable doing as basketball players, which for all three of those guys … it’s having the ball in his hands. The human struggle to want what you want … while also having the emotional maturity and recognition that you have somebody next to you, it hasn’t been as clean. There’s a clear pecking order when LeBron, or when Luka and AR, are on the floor together with guys that are low-usage players. That’s the nature of it. That’s the nature of nearly every big three that’s ever existed.”

Redick, however, said he’s seen enough lately to leave his belief fortified.

“We’re going to get there,” he said. “We’ve seen some positive signs, and I know LeBron, he recognizes the importance of having Luka as the engine. All he really wants is to impact winning. I’ve said this now for the last two weeks: We’re going to get there.”

On Tuesday, the Lakers had to feel better about Ayton’s part in getting them there. There have been games when he’s been great, games when he’s been bad, games when he’s been invisible. But against Minnesota, the Lakers needed Ayton. They didn’t have anywhere else to turn.

Jaxson Hayes and Maxi Kleber, two players not listed on the Lakers’ injury report Monday, were surprisingly scratched with back injuries. That left only two-way Drew Timme as another available big against a Minnesota team that knocked the Lakers and their small-ball lineups out of the playoffs a year ago.

“It’s great for his teammates to see him have a really good performance on both ends of the floor. I think it’s bigger for DA to have a game like that against a really good team, one of the best teams in basketball,” Redick said. “He’s won us and helped win us a ton of games this year. During this stretch, there’s been some ups and downs, but he was great (Tuesday). It’s good for his confidence.”

Playoff series aren’t won in mid-March, and Redick’s message to not overreact after Sunday’s win against the Knicks held true after another dominant 48 minutes on Tuesday. Reaves said the Lakers will undoubtedly have games left on their schedule when it looks like it’s falling apart.

“Are we going to continue to trust the way we’re doing it now will still work?” Reaves asked.

That’s next. First, the Lakers had to be sure they were heading in the right direction.

Then let’s stop it with trade talks.