The Los Angeles Lakers are predictably down 3-0 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals, but they’ve been more than competitive against the reigning NBA champions — at least in the first halves.
JJ Redick’s team took a one-point lead (58-57) into the halftime break in Game 2, only to lose by 18 points (125-107). In Saturday’s Game 3, they took a 59-57 lead into the interval in front of their fans at Crypto.com Arena. The result was the same, as they suffered a 23-point loss (131-108) to the only undefeated team in the 2026 playoffs.
Per OptaSTATS, the Lakers have made some unwanted NBA history by losing Games 2 and 3 by a combined 41 points.
“The Lakers are the first team in NBA history to lead at the half in back-to-back playoff games but lose both by a combined 40+ points.”
Lakers vs Thunder Game 3
The Lakers once again did a good job defensively on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, holding the reigning NBA MVP to 7-for-20 shooting. Offensively, too, they had one of their better nights of the series as they shot 47% from three (14-for-30) and generated a series-high 31 assists. However, a competitive game quickly turned into a blowout when the Thunder’s deep bench KO’d the Lakers with Cason Wallace and Isaiah Joe knocking down six of their combined eight threes in the second half.
“The Lakers have kept reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in check for the first three games of the series and have nothing to show for it,” wrote ESPN’s Tim MacMahon.
“Los Angeles’ strategy of having Marcus Smart hug Gilgeous-Alexander all over the floor when he didn’t have the ball and frequently doubling him when he did succeeded in slowing the superstar, who finished with his series-high 23 points on 7-of-20 shooting, didn’t work.”
Ajay Mitchell Overwhelms Lakers
Second-year guard Ajay Mitchell led all scorers with 24 points to go with his 10 assists and three steals. Per ESPN Research, he joined Magic Johnson, Chris Paul and Tyrese Haliburton as the only players since 1990 to log at 20 points, 10 assists and three steals without committing a turnover in a playoff game.
“He’s just finding his footing,” SGA said of Mitchell.
“It’s obviously his first run in the playoffs. It’s obviously a different ballgame. He’s just getting more and more comfortable as the game goes on, as the series goes on. I said this before, he had a rough [Game 2 in Phoenix], but he was so confident out there. I was never worried that he was going to figure it out, and he’s showing that.”
Jalen Williams, who’s currently sidelined with Williams, is happy to see Mitchell seize his opportunity as a starter in the playoffs.
“He’s ready for the moment,” Williams said of Mitchell.
“Especially me being out, it’s like embrace that moment. The team wants you to shoot those shots. The team wants you to be aggressive. When you’re aggressive, especially him, you end up making the right play more times than not. And he made the right play every single time. He’s a hell of a player.”
Lakers vs. Thunder Game 4 tips off at 10:30 p.m. ET on Monday.
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