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ESPN’s “First Take” analyst Shannon Sharpe believes a Los Angeles Lakers-Oklahoma City Thunder meeting in the playoffs will be a one-sided affair.
“With the way they’re shooting the ball now with D-Lo and Austin Reaves, first of all, it ain’t even going seven games,” Sharpe said on the March 5 episode of “First Take.” “We beat ’em 4-2. Doesn’t matter where they play, they could play in OKC, they could play in Norman, Oklahoma, they could play in Tulsa, Oklahoma, or they could play in Oklahoma City.
Lakers in four. Lakers in four. We might sweep ’em.”
Sharpe’s bold prediction came on the heels of the Lakers’ 116-104 win against a weary Thunder team playing on the second night of a back-to-back schedule on March 4 at Crypto.com Arena.
D’Angelo Russell and Reaves combined to shoot 9 of 16 3-pointers as the Lakers overcame a 12-point first-quarter Thunder lead and pulled away in the second half and led by as many as 25 points.
The Lakers have dominated the Thunder this season after a 133-110 loss in their first meeting. They have won their last three face-offs and seven of their last 9 meetings.
The Thunder have not won a playoff series since the 2015-16 season when Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook were still their 1-2 punch.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren are shaping up to be the Thunders’ next star duo but the Lakers have the upper hand in experience.
If the Lakers stay at No. 9 and the Thunder at No. 2, their pathway to a first-round meeting would be for Los Angeles to come out as the top team in the play-in tournament to get the no. 7 seed.
D’Angelo Russell Bounces Back
After getting benched down the stretch in a 124-114 loss to the defending champion Denver Nuggets, Russell responded with 26 points to lead the Lakers’ bounced-back win.
Russell shot 9 of 17 from the floor and hit 5 3-pointers against the West’s No. 2 seed. He hit three consecutive 3-pointers in the opening moments of the fourth quarter that killed any hopes of a Thunder comeback.
“I just knew he has those D-Lo moments, man,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham told reporters after the win, “where he can just throw it up any kind of way and he’s going to find his way through the hoop. It’s great to see him out there having fun, his teammates cheering him on, encouraging him, being aggressive and decisive. D-Lo is uber talented and we need him to play at that level in order for us to have that ultimate success.”
Russell is averaging 17.8 points on a career-high 41.6% 3-point shooting this season, along with 6.2 assists.
Gabe Vincents Ramping up to Return
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Lakers’ top free agent signing Gabe Vincent is ramping up his return before the playoffs.
“Gabe Vincent is doing more and more on the court,” Charania said on the March 5 episode of the “Run It Back” on FanDuel TV. “The Lakers will know more, I think, next week where Gabe Vincent stands. But barring any setbacks, it’s still mid to late March that he can get back in the lineup. The Lakers can still use another guard in the backcourt.”
Vincent will compete with the Lakers’ buyout market signing Spencer Dinwiddie for backup duties when he returns.
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