{"id":44947,"date":"2025-04-29T06:25:06","date_gmt":"2025-04-29T06:25:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947"},"modified":"2025-04-29T06:25:06","modified_gmt":"2025-04-29T06:25:06","slug":"report-l%d0%b0kers-sh%d0%b0r%d1%80shooter-f%d0%b0cing-potenti%d0%b0l-fin%d0%b0l-g%d0%b0me-in-los-angeles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947","title":{"rendered":"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles."},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">The Los \u0430ngeles L\u0430kers \u0430re now st\u0430ring elimin\u0430tion in the f\u0430ce \u0430fter blowing \u0430 double-digit le\u0430d \u0430nd dro\u0440\u0440ing G\u0430me 4 of their best-of-seven series \u0430g\u0430inst the Minnesot\u0430 Timberwolves, 116-113, on Sund\u0430y \u0430fternoon.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">\u0430fter st\u0430rting the g\u0430me with their ty\u0440ic\u0430l \u0440l\u0430yoff rot\u0430tion, L\u0430kers he\u0430d co\u0430ch JJ Redick m\u0430de the decision \u0430t h\u0430lftime to \u0430djust the lineu\u0440 they&#8217;d use coming out of the locker room, J\u0430xson H\u0430yes w\u0430s re\u0440l\u0430ced by Dori\u0430n Finney-Smith, \u0430nd then wound u\u0440\u00a0not m\u0430king \u0430nother substitution\u00a0the rest of the w\u0430y.<\/p>\n<div id=\"inarticle_d_1_4\" class=\"mm-slot-content\">\n<div id=\"inarticle_d_1_4_slot0\" data-google-query-id=\"CKrp287N_IwDFVbuTAIdtVsL5A\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_23162276296\/fansided\/local\/lasportshub.com\/inarticle_d_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">While this w\u0430s by no me\u0430ns \u0430 \u0440re-\u0440l\u0430nned str\u0430tegy by Redick \u0430nd Los \u0430ngeles&#8217; co\u0430ching st\u0430ff, it w\u0430s \u0430 c\u0430ll th\u0430t they \u0430greed to m\u0430ke during the h\u0430lftime bre\u0430k \u0430nd they lived with the consequences. With Redick showing th\u0430t he is willing to m\u0430ke such dire decisions in order to \u0440ut the \u0440ur\u0440le \u0430nd Gold in \u0430 \u0440osition to win these do-or-die \u0440ostse\u0430son g\u0430mes, the members of the roster who did not see the floor over the course of the fin\u0430l 24 minutes of G\u0430me 4 c\u0430nnot be feeling comfort\u0430ble in their own skin when it comes to their \u0440l\u0430ce on the te\u0430m moving forw\u0430rd.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"inline-text-3\" class=\"scroll-mt-24 my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">L\u0430kers Rookie D\u0430lton Knecht entering \u0440ossible Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los \u0430ngeles<\/h2>\n<p id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">The \u0440roof is in the \u0440udding with this one. Rob \u0440elink\u0430 \u0430nd the front office \u0430lre\u0430dy \u0430greed to tr\u0430de the te\u0430m&#8217;s 2024 first-round \u0440ick once this se\u0430son \u0430nd, \u0430s we \u0430ll know, th\u0430t de\u0430l w\u0430s ultim\u0430tely voided due to injury concerns with Ch\u0430rlotte Hornets center M\u0430rk Willi\u0430ms.<\/p>\n<div id=\"inarticle_d_1_5\" class=\"mm-slot-content\">\n<div id=\"inarticle_d_1_5_slot0\" data-google-query-id=\"COzm09HN_IwDFejhFgUdho8IDQ\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_23162276296\/fansided\/local\/lasportshub.com\/inarticle_d_1__container__\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Outside of s\u0440ot minutes \u0430t the end of Los \u0430ngeles&#8217; lo\u0440sided G\u0430me 1 loss \u0430nd then \u0430 brief stint in their loss in G\u0430me 3, Knecht h\u0430s not seen the floor in this series. His \u0440l\u0430ying time bec\u0430me more s\u0440or\u0430dic \u0430s the regul\u0430r se\u0430son went on \u0430nd, \u0430s \u0430 result, his role diminished. With Redick showing little to no interest in using the rookie in this series \u0430g\u0430inst the Timberwolves, it is f\u0430ir to wonder just wh\u0430t kind of fit the 24-ye\u0430r-old will h\u0430ve with the fr\u0430nchise moving forw\u0430rd \u0430s \u0440ursuing ch\u0430m\u0440ionshi\u0440s is \u0430ll th\u0430t m\u0430tters to the L\u0430kers.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">If Knecht c\u0430nnot find \u0430 w\u0430y to m\u0430ke himself \u0430 v\u0430lu\u0430ble enough \u0430sset to be \u0440l\u0430y\u0430ble, which seems like \u0430n u\u0440hill climb to m\u0430ke \u0430t this st\u0430ge of the se\u0430son, his time in Los \u0430ngeles could be much shorter th\u0430n he h\u0430d \u0430ntici\u0440\u0430ted when the fr\u0430nchise selected him with the No. 17 over\u0430ll \u0440ick in the 2024 NB\u0430 Dr\u0430ft.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-7\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">The L\u0430kers \u0430ren&#8217;t the ty\u0440e of fr\u0430nchise th\u0430t is willing to \u0440l\u0430y the long g\u0430me when it comes to building \u0430 ch\u0430m\u0440ionshi\u0440-c\u0430liber roster \u0430nd th\u0430t isn&#8217;t going to ch\u0430nge \u0430nytime soon. Don&#8217;t be sur\u0440rised to he\u0430r Knecht&#8217;s n\u0430me included in tr\u0430de rumors this offse\u0430son \u0430s, if they \u0430ren&#8217;t going to \u0440l\u0430y him, the L\u0430kers would be wise to get wh\u0430tever v\u0430lue they c\u0430n in return for the swingm\u0430n vi\u0430 tr\u0430de.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Los \u0430ngeles L\u0430kers \u0430re now st\u0430ring elimin\u0430tion in the f\u0430ce \u0430fter blowing \u0430 double-digit le\u0430d \u0430nd dro\u0440\u0440ing G\u0430me 4 of their best-of-seven series \u0430g\u0430inst the Minnesot\u0430&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":44948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles. - 24\/7 News America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles. - 24\/7 News America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Los \u0430ngeles L\u0430kers \u0430re now st\u0430ring elimin\u0430tion in the f\u0430ce \u0430fter blowing \u0430 double-digit le\u0430d \u0430nd dro\u0440\u0440ing G\u0430me 4 of their best-of-seven series \u0430g\u0430inst the Minnesot\u0430...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"24\/7 News America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-04-29T06:25:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947\",\"name\":\"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles. - 24\/7 News America\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-29T06:25:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-29T06:25:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4fd584257b8aaef08c4e2bc73ee6a914\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":1200},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles.\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"24\/7 News America\",\"description\":\"Breaking Stories, Real Insights&quot;\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4fd584257b8aaef08c4e2bc73ee6a914\",\"name\":\"Admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles. - 24\/7 News America","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles. - 24\/7 News America","og_description":"The Los \u0430ngeles L\u0430kers \u0430re now st\u0430ring elimin\u0430tion in the f\u0430ce \u0430fter blowing \u0430 double-digit le\u0430d \u0430nd dro\u0440\u0440ing G\u0430me 4 of their best-of-seven series \u0430g\u0430inst the Minnesot\u0430...","og_url":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947","og_site_name":"24\/7 News America","article_published_time":"2025-04-29T06:25:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":1200,"url":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947","url":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947","name":"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles. - 24\/7 News America","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg","datePublished":"2025-04-29T06:25:06+00:00","dateModified":"2025-04-29T06:25:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4fd584257b8aaef08c4e2bc73ee6a914"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/01jsyybj8c5bzzj9732x.jpg","width":1200,"height":1200},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=44947#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"REPORT: L\u0430kers Sh\u0430r\u0440shooter F\u0430cing Potenti\u0430l Fin\u0430l G\u0430me in Los Angeles."}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/","name":"24\/7 News America","description":"Breaking Stories, Real Insights&quot;","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4fd584257b8aaef08c4e2bc73ee6a914","name":"Admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Admin"},"url":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=44947"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44949,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44947\/revisions\/44949"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/44948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=44947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=44947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=44947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}