There has long been a theory with the Los Angeles Lakers, that players who were injured for long periods miraculously become healthy when their team plays the L.A. This notion was mentioned by Luka Doncic himself a few weeks ago, and now we finally have some cold, hard data to back up the claim.
Memphis Grizzlies star point guard Ja Morant had missed the last six games prior to his team's matchup with the Lakers on Saturday. So, of course, he was back in the lineup just in time.
When asked about the trend, L.A. head coach JJ Redick claimed that "86% of [opposing] payroll has been available to [play] us this year, which is by far No. 1 in the league."
JJ Redick was asked about opposing players going against the Lakers, with the expectation that Morant returns tonight. Earlier this season Redick had his analytics group look into it, finding that 86% of opposing team’s players have been available, which was No. 1 in the NBA.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) March 29, 2025
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Why are players always available for the Lakers?
The Lakers are the most storied franchise in the NBA. Some may nominate the Boston Celtics for that honor because they have one more championship, but factoring the amount of star power the Lakers have and the L.A. market, it's hard to argue against putting them at No. 1.
Another factor working in favor of the Lakers is LeBron James. James is the most revered and discussed athlete in of all of sports. After every game, mainstream media outlets are talking about what he and the Lakers did. That draws buzz, and every player wants some of that spotlight.
Combine one of sports' most popular franchises and one of sports' most discussed players, and opposing teams have a golden chance to showcase their talents. If they can win against a team that gets talked about a lot, then they get discussed themselves.
While it would be easy for the Lakers and their fans to hang their heads about it, in reality it's a blessing. They know every single night that they are getting the best from their opponent. As a team preparing to make a deep playoff run, that's what they need — even more so considering they have the second-hardest schedule remaining.
It will be interesting to see how that 86% changes over the final couple of weeks of the regular season. The Lakers have two games against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have already clinched the No. 1 seed in the West. There are also two games against the Houston Rockets and one against the Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers, New Orleans Pelicans, and Dallas Mavericks.
Chances are that the teams fighting for position will be playing their players and teams that aren't probably won't. The biggest question is the Thunder, but since they are viewed as the Lakers biggest challenge in the postseason, they should want them to be play their best players.