NFL
By: Christopher Jordan
The Los Angeles Lakers clinched themselves a ticket to the playoffs as the seventh seed when they beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in a close game that can down to a late rally by the Lakers in overtime. With the win over the Timberwolves, the Lakers will face the Memphis Grizzles led by Ja Morant.
Morant is one of the best players in the NBA, and the Lakers will have their hands full against Morant and a talented Memphis team. The Memphis Grizzles have been one of the best teams throughout the Western Conference all season, and the Grizzles are a team that came into the season with high expectations.
Memphis finished the season with a 51-31 record giving them the second seed going into the playoffs. Despite everything that’s happened with the Grizzles this season dealing with the Morant situation and the injuries to Brandon Clarke and Steven Adams.
The Memphis Grizzles are still a team that has a chance to compete for a championship and possibly make it to the finals. Unlike the Grizzles, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a season full of ups and downs since the start of the season.
Los Angeles started the season 2-10, and they had a 0.3 chance to make the playoffs now; the Lakers have a chance to do something special going into the playoffs.
Since the trade deadline, the Lakers had a 16-7 record which was the best in the NBA. Before the trade deadline, the Lakers were a team that wasn’t good enough to compete for a championship with players such as Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverly, who weren’t naturally good fits.
Can The Los Angeles Lakers Upset the Memphis Grizzlies
The new-look Lakers are now a team that can compete with anyone, especially since the Lakers have LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the Lakers roster. LeBron James and Anthony Davis will have a favorable matchup against the Memphis Grizzles because of the absence of Clark and Adams; the Lakers will have an advantage in the interior throughout the series.
Anthony Davis will need to be the best player for the Lakers if they want to win the series. Davis will be against Jaren Jackson: who’s the potential defensive player of the year. Davis will be tested and will need to answer the call and play like a top-tier player for the Lakers.
LeBron James will also need to answer the call for the Lakers. No one on the Grizzles roster can guard him, and James has only lost in the first round of his career just once, so James will be looking to make a statement in the series against a Grizzle team that doesn’t have the most experience.
For either team going into the series, the key will be which team’s bench plays better throughout the series because both the Grizzles and Lakers rely on their bench production.
The Los Angeles Lakers will need Austin Reaves, Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Troy Brown, Lonnie, Rui Hachimura, Dennis Schroder, and D’Angelo Russell to step up and play a key role if they Lakers want to win this series.
The Grizzles, on the other hand, will need players such as Dillion Brooks, Tyus Jones, Luke Kennard, and Ziaire Williams to play their hearts out, especially since the Grizzles are coming into the series short-handed.
The Los Angeles Lakers are coming into the series with house money because all the pressure is on Memphis.
The Memphis Grizzles are the second seed in the playoffs and will have a court advantage. However, the Los Angeles Lakers are a seventh seed that’s more than capable of beating the Grizzles. The Lakers will win a hard-fought series against the Grizzles in six games and advance to the conference semifinals.
