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Welcome to the latest — and final for the 2019-20 season — edition of “My Three Favorite Details,” a weekly video series in which I detail three plays or moments from the previous week of Lakers games that jumped off the screen to me, with one play highlighting elite movement mechanics, one highlighting physical attributes (speed, power, balance, agility, etc), and one highlighting mental skills (awareness, anticipation, reading of the game).
Today’s video encompasses the Lakers’ masterpiece of a Game 6 performance vs the Miami Heat to clinch the franchise’s record-tying 17th championship.
These were some of my favorite things that I noticed:
So there you go. The Lakers’ team defense — highlighted by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in lock-and-trail technique and Anthony Davis’ excellent recognition and contest — forcing Duncan Robinson into a tough 3-point miss, Alex Caruso and LeBron with an elite understanding and synergy on the pick and roll to create a monster dunk, Davis simply overpowering the Heat in the lane on the weakside, and finally, J.R. Smith going full victory cigar shirtless mode.
That’s it for this edition of my three favorite details, and the last one for this season. It’s been a pleasure, and for anyone who has followed along, thank you for your time. I’ll hopefully be back with these next season but in the meantime, WE THE CHAMPS.
Dr. Rajpal Brar has a doctorate in physical therapy from Northern Arizona University, and runs his own sports medicine and performance business, 3CB Performance, in West LA and Valencia, CA. He also works at a hospital — giving him experience with patients in the immediate healthcare setting and neurological patients (post stroke, post brain injury) — and has been practicing for 1.5 years. Brar is additionally training at UCLA’s mindful awareness research center (MARC), and analyzes the Lakers from a medical perspective for Silver Screen and Roll and Laker Film Room.