Lakers concerns and 3 other notable takeaways from NBA’s bubble restart

1. Los Angles Lakers are struggling

Before we talk about the Lakers’ struggles it is important to point out a couple of positives. First, they clinched their first playoff berth in seven years. Second, they’ve locked up the best record in the western conference, even if the home-court advantage is no longer a factor. The Lakers had also won eight of their previous 10 games heading into the bubble.

Unfortunately, the Lakers have hit a rough patch over their past five outings. They kicked off the restart with a solid 103-101 victory against the LA Clippers. Since then, they have dropped three of their last four contests, including losses to the Raptors, Oklahoma City Thunder, and the Houston Rockets. And all of their losses have been by at least 15 points.

As was the case during the regular season, the Lakers have had difficulty knocking down the long ball as their 24th-place ranking would indicate. In fact, they have connected on just 37 of their 158 attempts from beyond the arc — a frigid 23.4 percent conversation rate.  This includes a 5-for-37 and 2-for-19 showings in their last two outings.

On the positive side, the Lakers are ranked second in scoring defense, giving up 106.9 points per contest. They also have the third-best defensive rating in the NBA at 105.5 points per 100 possessions. The question here is will their solid defense be able to overcome their subpar effort on the offensive end when the playoffs roll around?