Timberwolves coach highlights significant improvement in LeBron’s defense.<\/p>\n
The Los Angeles Lakers have posted a 4-2 record since Luka Doncic joined the team on Feb. 10. What should be concerning to the rest of the league is that the team is still in the early stages of figuring out their dynamic with their new star player.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s well known that Doncic performs best in the postseason, thriving when April, May, and June arrive. He has the potential to lead the team to a playoff series win or two on his own, but in the meantime, the players around him are each enhancing their skills in different ways.<\/p>\n
LeBron James, for instance, is continuing to perform at an extraordinary level. In February, he’s averaging 29.0 points, 7.4 assists, shooting 55% from the field and 46% from three. Will he ever slow down?<\/p>\n
Yet, an often overlooked aspect of his recent performance has been his defense. It’s been a while since LeBron was regarded as one of the league\u2019s top defenders, but he’s been on a strong defensive run recently. Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch discussed James\u2019 current play on KFAN sports radio and the upcoming Lakers-Timberwolves game.<\/p>\n
Finch: LeBron’s defense has improved with AD’s absence.<\/p>\n
“LeBron continues to play at a very high level,” Finch said. “That’s been crucial for them this season. In my opinion, that’s still the main factor driving their success when he has these types of games, and I’ve been impressed by his defense lately and this year. He\u2019s often been a game-changer on defense.”<\/p>\n
“He’s probably been the most engaged and active I’ve seen in the past five or six years. And (the Lakers) know that without Anthony Davis, there’s an awareness, like, \u2018AD is no longer here to solve all our problems, so we have to be better overall.\u2019”<\/p>\n
It seems that the Lakers\u2019 lack of Davis as their defensive anchor has pushed LeBron to elevate his defense. Additionally, with Doncic now handling the offense, LeBron can focus less on scoring and playmaking, bringing a more complete approach to the game each night.<\/p>\n
This new style the Lakers are still refining could yield significant results by the postseason. With over six weeks left for LeBron to further enhance his defense and for Luka to adjust to his new team, the Lakers will likely be a formidable opponent in the playoffs.<\/p>\n
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Timberwolves coach highlights significant improvement in LeBron’s defense. The Los Angeles Lakers have posted a 4-2 record since Luka Doncic joined the team on Feb. 10. What should be concerning to the rest of the league is that the team is still in the early stages of figuring out their dynamic with their new star […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27046,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2586,246],"tags":[60],"class_list":["post-27045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lakers","category-nba","tag-lebron-james"],"yoast_head":"\n