Inside South Bay Lakers’ historic run to G League playoffs

The South Bay Lakers have been on a roll in the final months of the regular season, setting a franchise record 12-game win streak in the process. With the G League playoffs set to tip off next week, South Bay comes in as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference following their 140-132 win against the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the affiliate of the Miami Heat, in the final game of the season.

Across the final two months of the year, South Bay finished with a record of 17-4. The team is playing their best basketball of the season, something that head coach Zach Guthrie made a point of emphasis.

“I’m feeling good about it. We talked about how we need to peak at the end of the year. We just got to keep building day by day,” Guthrie told ClutchPoints.

“It’s a special group, honestly. It goes without saying, the level of talent we have is ridiculous for the G League … We have a great group and everyone has to sacrifice and subsume their ego in some way.”

A big part of South Bay’s recent hot stretch is the inclusion of assignment players and two-way contract players from the Los Angeles Lakers. Bronny James has continued his professional development splitting time between both clubs. Adou Thiero has gotten acclimated to the pro game by getting reps with South Bay. Dalton Knecht has gotten the opportunity to play consistent minutes.

Nick Smith Jr. and Drew Timme, both of whom have helped the Lakers win NBA games this season, have stayed sharpe by playing with South Bay when they aren’t active with the main team. And Chris Mañon, the Lakers lone two-way contract player who hasn’t seen regular NBA minutes, has polished his game in the G League.

RJ Davis’ leading South Bay offensive attack

But South Bay’s success wouldn’t be possible without the core group of players who have been with the team since day one. RJ Davis, who has used this season to remind people that he’s more than just the scorer he was known for at North Carolina, is the steady hand at point guard running the team.

Even when the Lakers’ assignment players have been on the roster, he’s usually remained in the starting lineup. Davis’ strong play this season was rewarded with a G League Next Up Game selection over NBA All-Star Weekend. He’s been the floor leader the team has needed, especially when James has not been on the court. For him, the team’s recent streak has everything to do with mentality.

“I think our togetherness has been working, our sense of urgency. I think our intent coming into games has been to be aggressive, be the aggressor. Make the first punch,” Davis told ClutchPoints. “I think we’ve been doing a good job of that over the last couple of games. A couple slips here and there but that’s normal. Our main thing was not to get too complacent.

“I felt like over the winning streak, each game we had something to prove. Everyone was sharing the ball, we played basketball the right way.”

Davis has started 31 of the 36 regular season games he’s played, averaging 18.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists. He’s shot 48 percent from the field, 45.9 percent from the 3-point line and 85. 2 percent from the free-throw line.

As the playoffs approach, Davis is unwavering in his confidence that South Bay has the talent to make a strong postseason run. There are some things they need to clean up, but mentality-wise, they’re in a good place.

“I think we’re in a really good spot. We have the talent, we have the players,” Davis said. “There are obviously things we can control, and we’re in a really good spot heading into the playoffs.”

Arthur Kaluma steadying South Bay bench

Another key piece for the South Bay Lakers has been Arthur Kaluma. Even when the Lakers’ assignment players are not with the team, Kaluma has been anchoring the second unit. It’s a different kind of role for him considering the fact he started all but three of his 134 games across four seasons of college basketball.

Kaluma has come off the bench in every game he’s played for South Bay, including the Showcase Cup schedule, and there’s no denying his importance to the team. He’s finished games and he’s even led the team in scoring at times.

“It was kind of a good change of pace, change of scenery, a good introduction,” Kaluma told ClutchPoints. “I feel like it doesn’t really matter who starts games, it matters who finishes it.”

Kaluma has averaged 14.6 points and 4.9 rebounds. He’s shot 54.8 percent from the field, 36.7 percent from the 3-point line and 84.5 percent from the free-throw line.

Part of the reason why the South Bay Lakers have been so effective this season is because of the versatility the team has, of which Kaluma is big part of. He has size and strength to play up as a four or small-ball five, and he can space the floor and has defensive instincts of a wing.

“We’re just full of crazy talent. When we get working together, I feel like there’s too many options on the court for teams to really stop,” Kaluma said. “We got to work on our defense, second chance points, but other than that I feel like we got a really good group of talented individuals who want to win basketball games.”

South Bay Lakers’ playoff outlook

While South Bay has had strong offensive talent with the ability to outscore teams, they’ve been able to win games in gritty, tough ways. Hitting the glass hard, playing tough defense, being more physical than the other team. It’s a reflection of the ‘Banshee’ mentality that Lakers head coach JJ Redick stresses.

Both the Lakers and South Bay work hand-in-hand throughout the season, collaborating extensively as part of a real development system. It’s why there’s always a seamless transition when the Lakers’ assignment players are with the team.

Despite the NBA talent that has helped fuel South Bay’s season, Guthrie has been able to get everyone to buy into their roles and buy into the system.

“We wear teams down defensively … that’s what we do, and this team has really embraced it. We have a lot of talent, but we win in grimy, unselfish ways. We win by defending as a collective and moving the ball offensively and everyone eats,” Guthrie said.

“Guys that are starting are now coming off the bench, guys that were playing big minutes are DNP. But it’s the way that everyone goes about it … Dalton, Bronny Drew Timme, Chris Mañon, Nick Smith, they’re buying into roles. They’re buying into what we’re asking of them … we have a standard for them and they’re rising to that occasion.”

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