Lakers’ Jake LaRavia shows zero fear of facing Thunder in 2nd round

Story by

Josue Pavon, ClutchPoints

Mon, May 4, 2026 ·

3 min read

Lakers’ Jake LaRavia shows zero fear of facing Thunder in 2nd round appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .

Los Angeles Lakers forward Jake LaRavia is taking on a fearess approach to Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder . JJ Redick says the Thunder is one of the greatest NBA teams in recent history, stacking them on the plateau as the Michael Jordan last three championship-run with the Chicago Bulls , and Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors in their heyday.

For LaRavia, respect is one thing , but fear can’t be the kind of feeling the Lakers carry into the series opener on Tuesday, he said, per The California Post’s Michael Duarte.

“A lot of us on this team have been underdogs in life, especially in our journey with basketball,” LaRavia said. “It’s not really something we look at or really care about. We’re coming in to compete. We’re coming in to win a series.”

Jake LaRavia knows the odds are stacked against the Lakers. However, it won’t dwindle his confidence heading into a second-round series against the defending champions.

“When you’re coming into any game, regular season or playoffs, you can respect a team, but you can’t fear them,” LaRavia added. “You can’t come into the game fearing the opponent. You’re just going to come in and get punked. We respect how good this team is, but our goal is to win. Win the games and win the series. Our mindset stays the same when it comes to that.”

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder, the only NBA team to finish their first-round series in a 4-0 sweep, eliminated the Phoenix Suns in Game 4 last week.

JJ Redick’s honest take on Thunder’s greatness ahead of series

Lakers head coach JJ Redick gave the Thunder its flowers for its dominant run as defending champions. Ahead of the Lakers’ second-round series, Redick recognized the Thunder its incredible run .

“The Thunder is one of the greatest teams ever in NBA history,” Redick said. “That’s just the reality. They’re that good. I think our guys recognize that and respect that, and we know what kind of task we have in front of us.”

The Thunder will host the Lakers for Game 1 at the Paycom Center on Tuesday.