Despite recent struggles for the Los Angeles Lakers, a bright spot has been forward Jake LaRavia, as he was thrust into the starting lineup with Rui Hachimura sidelined.
Specifically in his last 10 games, he is averaging 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals on 49.5% from the field and 39.6% from 3-point range. Due to LaRavia’s strong play, it is hard to imagine him not staying in the starting lineup along with being a perimeter defender, which is rare on this Lakers roster.
Although the 24-year-old had offensive struggles, he is active defensively and tries to impact the game in different ways. A reason behind his high effort and energy is that he takes pride in wearing a Lakers jersey.
“I said it when I first got here. It means something to wear Lakers across your chest,” LaRavia recently said. “Like you said, I grew up a fan. My dad grew up a fan of the Lakers. We understand, and I understand, the impact that it has to play for this team. The impact it has for the fans to come out and watch us every game and support us and cheer for us. So I wear the Lakers with pride across my chest every night.”
When signing with L.A. this summer, the 6’7″ forward made it apparent that his family is Lakers fans and luckily an opportunity presented itself to join the team. Having a player who takes ownership in representing the team he plays for tends to correlate to play on the court and fans resonate with that as well.
Honestly, the Lakers need more energy players as the trade deadline approaches. Los Angeles’ best lineup this year is LaRavia and Marcus Smart starting next to Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Deandre Ayton.
Having a balance of offense and defense with the starters is a necessity. LaRavia is responsible for improving the team’s defense, but there needs to be buy-in from everyone if they hope to turn the ship around.
JJ Redick praises Jake LaRavia and Jaxson Hayes for recent play
Role players are vital to a team’s success if they hope to compete for championships. However, the Lakers have remained last in bench scoring for a considerable amount of this season.
Yet, LaRavia’s insertion into the starting lineup has garnered positive results, along with Jaxson Hayes, who closed games recently in favor of Deandre Ayton at times. Head coach JJ Redick is taking notes of those two and praised their play as of late.
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