LeBron James is well aware of how good the OKC Thunder will be against the LA Lakers
LeBron James is well aware of how good the OKC Thunder will be against the LA Lakers originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Los Angeles Lakers just finished off the Houston Rockets in a Game 6 blowout. It was one of the most impressive results of the season for the Lakers , as they dominated to book their ticket into the second round. Now, they are set to play against the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder .
It will be yet another tough test for LeBron James and his Lakers teammates. This is probably the hardest one yet because the Thunder are the best team in the league, as evidenced by their sweep of the Phoenix Suns in their first-round series. However, LeBron is already well aware of OKC's level.
LeBron James and the Lakers know how tough it will be to play against the Thunder
Most people expected the Rockets to take over the first-round series against the Lakers. Unfortunately, that was not the case because the Rockets truly broke down, even when Kevin Durant was healthy. Now, the Lakers are into the second round, just in time for their players to keep recovering.
Despite the promising recovery period for Austin Reaves and now Luka Doncic , they are once again heavy underdogs. They are playing against the best team in the league in the second round, the OKC Thunder, led by head coach Mark Daigneault and his team's elite depth.
MORE: LeBron James is glad to have the lead against Father Time
It will be a blockbuster series between a team led by a 41-year-old LeBron and the defending champions led by Shai Gilgeous Alexander . This will be a tough matchup for either team, but the Thunder are the favorites. LeBron is well aware of that, as he knows they will have to be ready for the Thunder's onslaught.
"Obviously, it's the defending champs. One thing you have to do is protect the ball against those guys. They play physical, handsy defense... We know the head of the snake, a possible back-to-back MVP for Shai," LeBron said to Dirk Nowitzki and the rest of the Prime Video NBA broadcast .
"We will scout them, but they are a fully-equipped team, just not Shai, but it trickles down to the rest of the starting lineup and the bench. We have a full plate once again, but we are ready for the challenge."
The Lakers are aware that they are set for one of the toughest matchups in the world. As long as they can stay alive and bring the fight to the Thunder, they could pull of the surprise upset. It is unlikely, but with LeBron leading the way, anything is possible.
