The Los Angeles Lakers are trailing the Oklahoma City Thunder 3-0 in their Western Conference Semifinals series, according to a May 10 statement. The Thunder have maintained an undefeated record in the playoffs this year and now sit one win away from advancing.
The Lakers have managed to keep games close through halftime but have struggled after the break, particularly in the third quarter. In Game 2, Los Angeles led by one point at halftime before being outscored by 14 points in the third quarter and ultimately losing 125-107. In Game 3 on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena, the Lakers again held a narrow lead at halftime but were outscored by 13 points in the third quarter, resulting in a 131-108 defeat.
When asked if Oklahoma City always seems to find an answer for any strategy deployed by Los Angeles, Austin Reaves said: “I mean, you could say that.” He added: “I thought we played really good first half, even a little bit in the third quarter. That’s kind of been the trend the last couple games, just gotta figure out how to take that first half and move it to the second.”
Oklahoma City has built a combined advantage of 31 points over Los Angeles during third quarters throughout this series. Reaves admitted uncertainty about why this pattern continues: “I don’t know,” he responded when asked about the Lakers’ struggles after halftime. “I’ll have to watch the film.” When pressed further on how to prevent extended scoring runs by Oklahoma City, Reaves said: “That’s basically the same question. If I had the answers, we would not be struggling.”
Reaves is five games into his return following nearly a month sidelined with a Grade 2 left oblique injury. While he showed improvement with nine assists during Saturday’s game, he also recorded five turnovers and made only five of thirteen field goals.
No team has ever come back from a three-game deficit in NBA history. The Lakers will need significant improvements across all areas if they hope to avoid elimination when they meet Oklahoma City again on Monday night.
