3 things the Lakers can’t allow to happen vs. Warriors

2. Small-ball lineups prevailing over Lakers’ size

With a frontcourt of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and either Marc Gasol, Andre Drummond or Montrezl Harrell, the Lakers have a size advantage against most teams. Against a Warriors squad whose only true centers are Kevon Looney and James Wiseman (out due to injury), LA has a huge advantage, and they have to make sure to put that disparity to good use.

The problem there is the Warriors have a potentially dangerous counter with Draymond Green playing the 5. Obviously the “Death Lineup” has been nowhere near as potent this season after downgrading from Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant on the wings to Wiggins and the Kelly Oubre Jr.-Kent Bazemore-Juan Toscano-Anderson pu-pu platter, but Green is still dangerous when he’s deployed as a small-ball center. He’s a candidate for the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team this year as the Dubs’ lead communicator, help defender, play reader and rim protector.

Green has been a non-threat as a 3-point shooter this season (27 percent), so when the Lakers inevitably trap Curry and leave Green wide open as the roll man, they have to scramble back quickly so Draymond is unable to take advantage of any 4-on-3 looks around the paint. Los Angeles can live with the results if he starts shooting, but Green’s playmaking and the Warriors’ ball movement can make even a league-leading offense look bad.

Drummond and Harrell figure to be liabilities trying to defend pick-and-roll actions with Curry and Green, and even Gasol is a step slow these days. If the Lakers want to win this game, they have to be able to survive the small-ball lineups Golden State throws their way, punishing them with offensive boards, points in the paint and yes, possibly even unleashing their secret weapon with AD at the 5.