Los Angeles Lakers 2025 NBA Playoffs Preview: Key stats, X-factor and more

The Los Angeles Lakers have emerged as one of the favorites to take home this year’s championship led by the superstar duo of LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Under first year head coach JJ Redick, the Lakers rose from the play-in tournament all the way to the third seed in the Western Conference in the second half of the season.

The Los Angeles Lakers improved their record by only three games compared to last season, but those wins make all the difference in the Western Conference. Had they repeated their win total from last season, they would have found themselves in the play-in tournament yet again. Instead, Los Angeles will have home-court advantage in the first round.

While the Lakers were a solid team at the beginning of the year, much of their success to end the year is thanks to the arrival of Luka Doncic in one of the biggest trades that the NBA has ever seen. The Slovenian star has brought a new energy to the Lakers, leading their offense and allowing a 40-year old LeBron James to reserve his energy for the postseason.

Before sitting a majority of their rotation in their final game of the regular season, the Lakers had been building momentum to end the year, winning six of eight games. Securing those wins were crucial in securing the third seed in a cramped Western Conference. If the Lakers had lost just two more games, they would have been one of the teams in the log jam competing to stay within the top six seeds.

Defining Statistic: Playing small

While bringing in Luka Doncic was one of the biggest additions of the NBA season, it cost the Los Angeles Lakers almost all of their frontcourt size. They gave up Anthony Davis in the deal, leaving them with only one rotation center left; former Texas Longhorn Jaxson Hayes. The Lakers have since signed Trey Jamison III onto the team, but they only have two rotation players taller than 6-foot-10.

Thanks to lineups that see LeBron James playing center in some stretches, including their best five-man group, the Lakers have suffered on the glass. They average 42.4 rebounds per game, which is less than every other team in the postseason with the exception of the Orlando Magic and the Indiana Pacers. However, JJ Redick has inspired his team to play a whirlwind style of defense and the team has had one of the league’s stingier defenses since acquiring Doncic.

The Los Angeles Lakers have the benefit of having two of the smartest players in the league on the same team, which makes up for a lot of what their roster is lacking. While relying on James to play center is a risk because of his age and the talented bigs they will face in the Western Conference playoffs, the Lakers have shown the ability to overcome their lack of size with overwhelming offense and an energetic defense.

Playoff X-Factor: Rui Hachimura

Los Angeles’ trio of stars will determine just how far the team will go in the postseason, but the Los Angeles Lakers wings are the key to the team’s ability to hinder the star players they will clash with in the postseason. Rui Hachimura, along with Dorian Finney-Smith, will take on the toughest defensive assignment in every game of every series, no matter what position their opponent’s best player lines up at

Last season, Hachimura did as good a job as anyone except Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert against Nikola Jokic in their first round series against the Denver Nuggets. His 6-foot-8 frame, as well as his strength as a defender on the interior, makes him a valuable asset for the Los Angeles Lakers as they enter the postseason with two below-average defenders in Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

While Rui Hachimura, along with the rest of the Lakers role players, will be expected to lead the team’s defense against opposing offenses in the postseason, they will also be relied upon to hit open threes in order to spread the floor for the team’s trio of stars. Hachimura is having another great season shooting from three-point range, notching another year shooting north of 40% from deep.

First round preview: How do the Los Angeles Lakers stack up against the Minnesota Timberwolves?

While they were able to dodge matchups against the Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors, two teams that have given them trouble over the past few seasons, the Los Angeles Lakers won’t be able to cruise in their first round matchup. They will face off with the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round, led by one of the most dangerous players in the postseason in Anthony Edwards.

Fortunately for the Los Angeles Lakers, they match up very well stylistically with the Timberwolves, who won’t be able to rely on lineups featuring Rudy Gobert against a Lakers team that wants to play small and fast. Additionally, Gobert has been exploited by Luka Doncic every time the two have met in the postseason, including multiple key moments in last year’s Western Conference Finals.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been a stingy defensive team throughout the season, but injuries have held them back. However, they are riding as much momentum as any team in the NBA to end the season, winning eight of their last ten regular season games.

A first round exit would be a disappointment for both teams, but for a Los Angeles Lakers team trying to make the most of the final seasons of LeBron James’ legendary career, they are under pressure to make a deep run in the playoffs.