Lakers need to learn these lessons from 2026 Western Conference finals
When the buzzer sounded on the Spurs’ 111-103 Western Conference finals Game 7 victory over the Thunder, a new king of the conference was crowned.And the series, which was the first Western Conference finals to go seven games in eight years, showcased how far behind the Lakers and the rest of the conference teams are in competing against the Spurs and Thunder.For the Lakers, the gap was already evident. They lost all four regular-season matchups to the Thunder with an average margin of defeat of 29.3 points per game.And in the playoffs, albeit without superstar guard Luka Doncic, they suffered a four-game sweep with an average margin of defeat of 16 points per game.The Lakers went 1-3 against the Spurs during the regular season with an average margin of defeat of 13.8 in those matchups.
The gap between the teams widened as the Spurs improved throughout the season. Those are the teams the Lakers will need to overcome if they’re going to compete in the West and contend for an NBA title.What lessons can the Lakers learn from the Western Conference finals to help close the gap?It starts with adding more depth to the roster. Many circumstances determine the success of a season for players and teams. Nothing should be taken away from the Spurs, who earned their spot in the NBA Finals for a matchup against the Knicks. The Thunder played without Jalen Williams, a 2025 All-NBA third-team honoree and All-Star, and Ajay Mitchell, Oklahoma City’s fourth-leading scorer during the regular season and second-leading scorer during the playoffs, for most of the Western Conference finals. Despite those absences, the Thunder pushed the series to seven games behind the strength of their depth.Even with Williams and Mitchell injured, OKC was competitive and trusted eight to nine players to consistently contribute in a deep playoff run. And that’s not even counting Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe, both of whom were in the Thunder’s rotation during their run to the 2025 NBA...