The Los Angeles Lakers earned the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, but they won’t be facing an easy matchup against the No. 8-seeded Portland Trail Blazers.
LeBron James recently broke down the difficulties of facing off against the Blazers’ star-studded backcourt in the upcoming series.
“They have a two-headed monster in Dame (Damian Lillard) and C.J. [McCollum],” James said. “It starts and ends with those guys. They control the tempo. They control the pace. They do all of the ball-handling, and they’re the rock of that franchise.”
He also admitted that the Blazers are very far from a typical No. 8 seed. Just last season, the Blazers finished the season as the No. 3 seed in the West.
They primarily dipped in the standings this season due to losing several key players to injuries. Key players who have since returned to full health.
“They are the best scoring team in the seeding games,” he said. “So you have to get multiple stops. You can’t try to outscore them because they can score with the best.
“I don’t think they would’ve been an eight seed if they had been healthy all year. That’s my mindset. I’m not going in as it’s a one seed versus an eight seed. I’m going in with it’s the Lakers versus Portland. I won’t be going in with my guard down.”
Without a doubt, James’ Lakers teammates are following his lead when it comes to how they’re approaching the upcoming matchup.
While the Lakers are fairly heavy favorites in the matchup, some have indicated that there is upset potential.
James seems well aware of that fact, and it seems as though he’ll be fully locked in for his team’s first playoff series.
Game 1 of the series between the Lakers and Blazers takes place on Tuesday evening in Orlando, Fla.
