![]() It combines elite defense and playmaking with just enough shooting to beat any opponent. That combination of seven players, with Davis playing at center, offers every skill that a championship team needs. The former offered supplementary playmaking. The final slots went to Dennis Schroder and Wes Matthews. They delivered, shooting a combined 50 percent from the floor while providing stellar defense and rebounding. Those were arguably the three most important role players on last season's championship team, and when the chips were down, Vogel trusted them again. Neither were Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope or Alex Caruso. They had to settle on their best groups or face elimination Friday, and from the middle of the third quarter onward, they used only seven players. The regular season was largely spent experimenting with different combinations and trying to make sure everyone got the reps that they needed.īut down 13 in a playoff game, the Lakers no longer had time to experiment. ![]() Good players often went weeks without playing. Balancing that group has been a challenge all season. The decisions were usually as basic as "big or small" and "which shooters do we use?" But Rob Pelinka built a roster this season with 13 rotation-caliber players all with disparate skill sets, many of whom are headed for free agency in the offseason. It was essentially built to surround the superstars with shooting and defense, and that made lineup construction relatively simple. Last season's roster was fairly easy to manage. The Lakers' front office put Frank Vogel in a very difficult position this season. Here are the three biggest takeaways from tonight's Lakers victory. With the Lakers moving on to face the Phoenix Suns, the Warriors will now have to shift their focus to another game on Friday night to keep their postseason hopes alive. This game delivered on every level as LeBron James and Stephen Curry came up clutch for their respective teams to bring us to the conclusion we ultimately saw. There was an error processing your subscription.
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