Mar 4, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Trey Murphy III (25) moves the ball against Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt (2) during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
When the Los Angeles Lakers traded for Luka Doncic, many critics around the league believed that their defense would struggle. That hasn't been the case at all, as the Lakers have been surging with an eight-game winning streak. It was highlighted during their win over the New Orleans Pelicans, holding them to sub-30% shooting from behind the arc.
While Max Christie and Anthony Davis played major roles for their defense, the Lakers have been pleasantly surprised to see an uptick in production from Jaxson Hayes, who has assumed the starting center spot. Following the Lakers-Pelicans game, forward Trey Murphy shared some high praise for the Lakers' standout defense.
"They play a really smart defense where they shut off driving lanes, they help off of guys and they just try to funnel everything into the paint but also still try to take away paint points," Murphy shared on an episode of The Young Man & The Three.
While Murphy did convert 50% of his shots with 19 points against the Lakers, he was held to one for six shots from behind the arc. The Lakers also disrupted New York Knicks star Karl-Anthony Towns on Thursday night, holding him to 3-13 shooting in the win.
Even though the Lakers' defense has been great as of late, they have a ways to go before they catch the Oklahoma City Thunder, who boast the league's second-best defense in points per game and have some of the best individual defenders in the NBA.
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