All season the Los Angeles Lakers have followed a pattern where the starters fall behind and it is left to the second unit to erase the deficit. It worked for a while, but with the team now decimated by injuries and with confidence waning, it is no longer as successful.
Head coach Luke Walton has tweaked the starting lineup while keeping the second unit intact as much as possible. But the changes have been ineffective and it may be time to make a more significant adjustment — at least until the injured players return and the roster starts to resemble again what it looked like when the season began.