Recent News: The Lakers have signed three highly skilled superstars.

The Los Angeles Lakers are finally starting to play well on a regular basis for what seems like the first time all season. Following a trip loss to the Atlanta Hawks at the end of January, LA was below.500; however, they have won eight of their previous 11 games and are rapidly moving up the Western Conference standings.

For a team that was hailed as one of the major winners of the 2023 offseason, their improved play has long been overdue. All season long, fans have been dissatisfied with some of Head Coach Darvin Ham’s lineup selections, but one particular decision seems to have been crucial to the Lakers’ turnaround.

Playing Taurean Prince in the starting unit for the majority of the season, Ham recently made a switch to re-insert Rui Hachimura into the first five on the floor. Since doing so, the Lakers have posted a 7-2 record, with one of the losses coming with LeBron James out.

Darvin Ham re-inserted Rui Hachimura into the starting lineup

This mirrors the tactic that Ham used post-deadline last season when he ran with Anthony Davis, LeBron, Austin Reaves, D’Angelo Russell and Jarred Vanderbilt to close the regular season. Ultimately, that lineup is what spurred an 18-8 finish to February, March and April last year before the team made their improbable run to the Western Conference Finals.

Naturally, Hachimura played a key role in the Lakers’ postseason victory from the previous season, averaging 12.2 points on 55% shooting and a scorching 48% from three-point range. Many supporters are perplexed as to why it took so long for the seemingly simple decision to turn him into a full-time starter for the current campaign.

This won’t be seen favorably by many people when it comes to the Lakers’ coach. There’s still a chance for LA to repeat as champions as they did at this time last year. However, until they win the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of the playoffs, the talk will center on Ham making his significant change too late.