As the Los Angeles Lakers looked to solidify their seeding in an ultra-competitive Western Conference, they played against championship-caliber teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Oklahoma City has been far and away the best team in the conference with a Coach of the Year candidate in Mark Daigneault and MVP-favorite in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Both teams squared off in Oklahoma for a mini two-game series and the Lakers managed to split, which boosted their confidence.
That first game on April 6, L.A. won 126-99 and were on the way to possibly winning again in the second game before Luka Doncic’s ejection. Looking back on that mini-series, Daigneault admitted it made the Thunder better as they prepare for the playoffs, via Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated:
“We’re young, and one of the things about us is we can continue to get better if we continue to focus on getting better,” said Daigneault. “If we started coasting, that wouldn’t have been great for us. And the string of opponents that we’ve had for the most part over the last two and a half, three weeks, it’s been really good for us and has made us better.
“That team [the Lakers] makes you better. If your help is, like, leaning in the wrong direction, they’re going to make the right play, like nine out of 10 times. And so [Sunday’s] game, having to respond to that, having to make some adjustments, having to emotionally respond, that was good for us. These are all relevant things for us, and they help us improve, and that’s what we continue to be focused on as we run through the end of the regular season.”
Oklahoma City has been a historic defense with plenty of perimeter defenders and two centers with size in Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. They have never been exposed like they were by the Lakers, but one could credit it to a good shooting night.
As the postseason looms, these two teams have been at the forefront of championship contender talk and perhaps they will meet again in a potential Western Conference Finals matchup. If so, both teams feel like they can beat the other, which would make for a very intriguing series.
JJ Redick discusses what makes Thunder so great
With the Thunder nearly winning 70 games this season, the Lakers had their hands full in those two games. Ahead of that back-to-back, L.A. head coach JJ Redick spoke to what makes Oklahoma City so great.
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