Published on: Apr 7, 2022 11:19 pm IST|Updated on: Apr 7, 2022 11:19 pm IST
GSW vs LAL Dream11: The NBA Regular Season is going to fold soon and it will be sad in a way that we will see many of the exciting teams depart. However, the end of the Regular Season will also bring the exciting Postseason, a window where we see highly intense games. The Phoenix Suns will enter as the title favorites but the Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, defending champions Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas Mavericks, and Golden State Warriors will stake their claims too. And in this game, contenders Warriors will host a highly ridiculed Los Angeles Lakers.
The Warriors have won two in a row but overall, if we take into account the larger picture, they haven’t been playing their best basketball. However, the experience of Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andrew Wiggins along with isolation threat Jordan Poole can propel the team to special places.
Sigh, what can I say about the Lakers! They are being blasted left and right, some experts even calling them the worst sports of all time (referring to Jay Williams). It will be interesting to see how the Lakers will respond during the offseason and of course, the status of Westbrook and Davis can be questioned. Host: Golden State Warriors Visitors: Los Angeles Lakers Match Timing: 8 April, @ 07:30 AM Venue: Chase Center
The Warriors defeated the depleted Kings 109:90 in the last game as Andrew Wiggins dropped 25 points. The Warriors have been surrounded with questions but after all of the poor play, a strong start to the season has them stationed at third place and they are not going to fall beyond the fourth position even if the Mavericks catch up. The team will be craving to get Curry back during the Playoffs but we can’t discount the depth of this team. Seriously, it is bamboozling that the Warriors hit a phase where they lost 80% of their games in a ten-game window.
It is surprising because Jordan Poole has been balling out as the main ball-handler, scoring a bunch of points and also moving the ball well. Klay Thompson has had some strong games recently and we know what he can do during Playoffs games. However, a lot will depend upon how many points Wiggins will score and the defensive influence of Draymond Green. Otto Porter Jr., Nemanja Bjelica, Jonathan Kuminga, Kevon Looney, Damion Lee, and Gary Payton III have done their bits too. The Warriors can catch fire during the Playoffs.
The Lakers were ruled out of contention for the Play-in tournament as they got rolled over 110:121 by the Suns despite a 28 points outburst by Westbrook.
The Lakers have to work out a lot of dynamics in the offseason. Davis’ recurring injury issues mean that the team can look in another direction. But the main question remains around Westbrook who didn’t have that bad of a season but couldn’t perform at the level that the team thought. The system didn’t work either for the former MVP or for the team. It will be interesting to see if the team will give him another shot and perhaps bringing in an athletic center who can play both ways can help address the situation.
The team needs some young and upcoming players who are hungry on the defensive end. Malik Monk had a strong season but he will need help alongside him. LeBron had another strong season but he is not the same defensive anchor he used to be and he can only do so much(He is getting unneeded heat though!). The trouble is we don’t wait for enough in the fast-paced NBA and expect championships from the big names immediately. How will the Lakers approach the offseason? Talking about this season, it is highly likely that the team can shut down Westbrook, LeBron, and Davis can be rested for the remaining games. Golden State Warriors (3rd in West) | Los Angeles Lakers (Eliminated from Play-in) Games: 79 | 79 Wins: 50 | 31 Defeats: 29 | 48
Golden State Warriors Team News
Warriors Expected Starting Five Wing: SF: Andrew Wiggins Defensive anchor: PF: Draymond Green Middle: C: Kevon Looney Guards: SG: Klay Thompson | PG: Jordan Poole
BENCH: Moses Moody, Damion Lee, Jonathan Kuminga, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Gary Payton II, Chris Chiozza.
Los Angeles Lakers Team News
Lakers Expected Starting Five
Wings: SF: Stanley Johnson Middle: C: Dwight Howard Guards: SG: Talen Horton-Tucker | SG: Malik Monk | PG: Austin Reaves
BENCH: Carmelo Anthony, Trevor Ariza, Wenyen Gabriel, Wayne Ellington, Kent Bazemore.
Jordan Poole(GSW) Points: 22 Rebound: 05 Assists: 04 Blocks: 01 Poole has done a great job as the starting Point Guard and his ability to score in bunches will be huge during the Playoffs. The primary ball-handler these days has mostly been in 21-28 points, 4-6 assists, and 4-6 rebounds rnage. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 30-45
Klay Thompson(GSW) Klay missed the last game and when he has been playing, he has managed to put a big influence on the scoring end. He has scored 25 or more points in three of the last four games while being in 3-5 rebounds range. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 28-38
Andrew Wiggins(GSW) Points: 25 Rebound: 05 Assists: 05 Steals: 01 Wing Andrew has recovered his rhythm scoring-wise and provides quality two-way production. He has mostly been in 17-25 points and 4-7 rebounds range. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 24-40
Anthony Davis(LAL) Points: 21 Rebounds: 13 Assists: 01 Blocks: 01 Steals: 01 Davis had a tough season, missing a ton of games due to injury, but when he played, he provided elite scoring, rebounding, and defense. He has mostly been in 21-28 points, 9-13 rebounds, and 1+ steals/blocks range. He is QUESTIONABLE here and like Westbrook, may be rested for the rest of the season.
Draymond Green(GSW) Points: 06 Rebound: 07 Assists: 05 Blocks: 02 Steals: 01 Green’s defensive prowess will be huge during the Postseason and he does bring a great all-around influence. He has mostly been in 6-10 points, 5-9 rebounds, and 4-8 assists range while getting 1+ blocks/steals a game.
LeBron James(LAL) James has missed a bunch of games recently and he had been an incredible scorer, rebounder, and playmaker all season. He is QUESTIONABLE here and may be rested for the rest of the season like Westbrook and Davis.
Malik Monk(LAL) Points: 07 Rebounds: 03 Assists: 05 Monk has made a case as a strong off-guard all season through his scoring but that hasn’t been enough for the Lakers. He has mostly been in 11-14 points and 4-7 assists range these days. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 28-41
(If Westbrook and LeBron don’t play which they most likely won’t) PG: Austin Reaves SG: M Monk, K Thompson(PP), J Poole(SP) SF: A Wiggins PF: N Bjelica C: D Howard, D Green
(If LeBron plays but Davis doesn’t which is a slim chance) PG: Austin Reaves SG: M Monk, K Thompson J Poole(PP) SF: L James(SP), A Wiggins PF: N Bjelica C: D Green
(If Davis plays but LeBron doesn’t which is a slim chance) PG: Austin Reaves SG: M Monk, J Poole(SP) SF: A Wiggins PF: N Bjelica C: A Davis(PP), D Green
(If both LeBron and Davis play then use the second lineup)
Wouldn’t you like to see Jordan Poole and Klay Thompson taking over the game? In a piece of great news, The match can be streamed on streaming services Voot and JIO TU, the official streaming services for NBA viewers in India. However, there are a lot of other games! The most prominent way to catch most of the NBA action is to dive into the NBA League Pass and if you purchase the annual subscription(599 rupees for a year), you can get both the live stream and the full game replay. To learn the scorecards, stats, and news, visit the official website of the NBA.