OKLAHOMA CITY \u2014 Every Lakers player who was asked Tuesday about their upcoming game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the first of two matchups in six days against the defending champions, provided answers with clear knowledge of the challenge ahead.<\/p>\n
Forward Jake LaRavia agreed that Thursday night\u2019s game was \u201c100%\u201d a measuring-stick game for the Lakers, currently the third-place team in the Western Conference.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like we\u2019ve been in a couple playoff games here recently,\u201d said LaRavia, who scored 14 points in the Lakers\u2019 127-113 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night. \u201cThis is obviously going to be another one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Forward Rui Hachimura said games against the first-place Thunder are an opportunity, especially considering the Lakers lost to them, 119-110, on Feb. 9 (though neither Luka Doncic or Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played in that game)<\/a>. Since then, the Lakers have gone 24-6.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re the championship team,\u201d Hachimura said. \u201cIt\u2019s gonna be a good test for us.\u201d<\/p>\n Lakers coach JJ Redick said playing the Thunder on Thursday, and again Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena, provides them a chance to build their \u201cplayoff mentality.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re the world champions,\u201d Redick said. \u201cThey\u2019re the best team in basketball, so it\u2019s a great opportunity for us to get better.\u201d<\/p>\n Last year, when the Lakers met the Thunder for early April games, the franchises were in a fairly similar position.<\/p>\n The Thunder were the No. 1 seed in the West, while the Lakers were 17 games behind Oklahoma City, and ultimately finished as the third seed heading into the postseason. In the first of two games in Oklahoma City, the Lakers trounced the Thunder by 27 points<\/a>. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said before Thursday\u2019s game that when you play playoff-level teams before the postseason, such as the Lakers last year, there are going to be times when you get \u201cbloodied up.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThose games are highly relevant,\u201d Daigneault said. \u201cIt\u2019s really about how you respond to that and what you can learn from that and apply that forward.\u201d<\/p>\n Two days later, the Thunder beat the Lakers by 16 points with Gilgeous-Alexander pouring in 42 points and Doncic ejected in the fourth quarter<\/a>.<\/p>\n By defensive rating, the Thunder have the most efficient defense in the NBA, allowing just 106.3 points per 100 possessions which is 2.5 points fewer than any other team in the league.<\/p>\n