The Los Angeles Lakers will roll out a slightly different starting lineup tonight against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Guard Wayne Ellington is in, while center DeAndre Jordan is out, giving L.A. a smaller lineup.
The Lakers are switching up the starting lineup against Minnesota, going with Wayne Ellington in the first group, joining AD, Westbrook, Bradley and Bazemore.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) November 13, 2021
The hope on the part of head coach Frank Vogel could be that a four-guard starting lineup will improve L.A.’s transition game while opening things up offensively for Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis.
Westbrook’s play has been showing signs of improvement lately, although his turnovers, at times, have still been a problem.
Anthony struggled a bit from the field against the Miami Heat on Wednesday. Perhaps a smaller lineup will give him more room to operate and help him get higher percentage shots.
The Lakers are still quite a bit shorthanded. Not only are LeBron James, Kendrick Nunn, Talen Horton-Tucker and Trevor Ariza out, but now rookie guard Austin Reaves will miss some time due to an injured hamstring.
