Lakers fight till the end — but against Thunder, that doesn’t matter: ‘Greatest teams ever’

It might not seem like it by looking at the score. 

But the Lakers have shown heart. They’ve shown fight. They’ve shown grit. 

Those may seem like crazy statements considering the Lakers have lost all three of their games against the Thunder in their second-round playoff series by an average of 19.7 points, including falling in Game 3, 131-108.

But let’s face reality: The Thunder are just vastly superior.

LeBron James, JJ Redick and the Lakers trail the Thunder 3-0 in the series, a deficit nobody in NBA postseason history has ever overcome before. Getty Images

Lakers coach JJ Redick recently called them “one of the greatest teams ever in NBA history.” LA never had a chance in this series. 

It’s fair to wonder if any team can challenge them this postseason. 

The Lakers are running uphill against a team that’s jogging on flat ground. They’re playing six guys against a roster so deep that they constantly have fresh legs on the court and never dip in productivity. 

That’s the reason LA trails the series, 3-0. That’s the reason they’re one game away from their season ending. 

It’s not because the Lakers haven’t poured out their hearts trying to stay in these games. It’s not because they rolled over without superstar Luka Doncic, who has been sidelined since April 2 because of a strained hamstring. It’s not because they haven’t given this their all. 

Out since April 2 with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, Laker star Luka Doncic will most likely miss the entire postseason unless the Lakers make history against the defending champions. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Lakers have done so much right this series.

In Game 2, the score was close for 3 1/2 quarters. In Game 3, it was neck-and-neck for 2 1/2 quarters. 

But the problem is the Lakers were gassed in both games. Their legs gave out. Meanwhile, the Thunder were barely out of breath. 

The Thunder have outscored the Lakers by an average of 18 points per game in the second half of this series. 

In the first half of Game 3, the Lakers outshot the Thunder from beyond the 3-point line, 55% to 33.3%, but they only entered halftime up by two points, 59-57. And two of their role players were nearly perfect over that period, with Rui Hachimura shooting 5-for-7 from the field and Luke Kennard shooting 5-for-6.

But none of that mattered.

The Thunder outscored the Lakers in the third quarter, 33-20. In the fourth quarter, they had a 41-29 advantage — and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander only played 3 minutes.

The Lakers have to be perfect to be competitive.

The problem is they can only sustain that level of play for so long with 41-year-old LeBron James as the head of the snake and a roster that’s not very deep.

As soon as they slow down, the Thunder come roaring into the game, ripping it open.

They’re so good. So deep. So overwhelming.

Lakers coach JJ Redick couldn’t help but throw his hands in the air after Game 3, pointing out that they’ve done an excellent job containing Gilgeous-Alexander, who has been a shell of himself this series after closing the first round leading all postseason scorers with 33.7 points per game.

But that hasn’t made a dent. 

“The MVP [scores] 18 [points in Game 1], 22 [points in Game 2], seven-of-20 tonight [23 points], and they’ve kicked our ass three straight games,” Redick said. “They’re an incredible basketball team. It has been that way all series.”

The Lakers will face elimination during Game 4 Monday night. Getty Images

Guarding the Thunder is like playing Whac-A-Mole.

Stop one guy? There are four other guys on the court who can score, and another five guys on their bench who are just as good.

What’s scary is their defense is even better than their offense. 

The Thunder make James look his age. They make Austin Reaves look frenzied. They make the team’s role players look inconsistent. They pick apart everyone with their top-rated defense. 

James had just 19 points on 7-for-19 shooting. Reaves had only 17 points on 5-for-13 shooting. The Thunder’s bench outscored the Lakers’ reserves, 44-31.

Those numbers might not reflect it, but the Lakers are giving this their all.

This isn’t an issue with any particular player. This is an issue with their roster. It’s just not able to contend with one of the youngest and deepest teams in the league.

They’re too top heavy. Too slow. Too outmanned. 

LeBron James has been great this postseason, but at 41-years-old, it’s hard to keep pace with the younger Thunder. NBAE via Getty Images

Now they’re staring at a 3-0 precipice, a series deficit so large that no team has ever recovered from it. 

If they can avoid a sweep, that would be a huge accomplishment. 

“Obviously, we gotta [give] everything, s–t,” James said. “Everything and more to beat a team like this. So we gotta be our best. Be at our best on Monday [in Game 4].”

But let’s be real, their best won’t cut it.

It can’t. 

Regardless of how much the Lakers fight, the truth is they’re in the wrong weight class against the heavyweight champions.  

The Lakers have shown a lot of heart. 

But against this team, that’s just not enough.