Buha's Block with Jovan Buha

In Episode 13, Jovan Buha previews the Play-In matchup between the No. 8 Los Angeles Lakers and the No. 7 New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Tuesday, April 16, 2024.

Jovan goes through additional notes from the regular-season finale, the season series numbers between the two teams, five adjustments for the Lakers, five adjustments for the Pelicans, and a matchup prediction, among other topics.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(1:36) Additional thoughts from the win over the Pelicans
(6:16) Season series statistical breakdown
(9:45) Adjustments preface
(10:47) Lakers adjustment No. 1: Spam the LeBron-AD pick-and-roll even more
(12:02) Lakers adjustment No. 2: Ruthlessly target Pelicans’ worst defenders more
(12:44) Lakers adjustment No. 3: Respect Herb Jones’ shooting
(14:15) Lakers adjustment No. 4: Tighten the rotation
(15:43) Lakers adjustment No. 5: Maintaining a sense of urgency
(16:51) Pelicans adjustment No. 1: Start Larry Nance Jr.
(17:59) Pelicans adjustment No. 2: Play BI more + run more offense through him
(19:43) Pelicans adjustment No. 3: Get Zion on the move
(20:46) Pelicans adjustment No. 4: Stop running pick-and-rolls at AD
(21:37) Pelicans adjustment No. 5: Target D’Angelo Russell more
(23:46) Adjustments recap
(24:41) Outro

Jovan Buha reacts to the Lakers' 124-108 win over the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on Sunday, April 14, 2024.

Jovan covers LeBron James' two-way dominance, LA rising to the occasion in big games, the latest on Anthony Davis' back injury, why being in the No. 7 vs. No 8 game is a win-win situation, the (obvious) downside of playing Denver and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(8:13) Takeaway No. 1: LeBron James’ two-way dominance
(12:21) Takeaway No. 2: LA returns to form
(16:24) Takeaway No. 3: This is a win-win situation
(23:33) Outro

Jovan Buha reacts to the Los Angeles Lakers' 123-120 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Jovan covers the impact of the Lakers' win in the standings, why this was an unserious performance from LA, D'Angelo Russell's recent shooting slump, the latest seeding developments, the stakes of Sunday's game in New Orleans and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(8:14) Thank you
(8:48) Takeaway No. 1: Unserious Basketball 2.0
(13:19) Takeaway No. 2: DLo is slumping at the wrong time
(17:16) Takeaway No. 3: Tonight was good for LA standings-wise
(22:57) Outro

In Episode 12, Jovan Buha welcomes Aaron Larsuel to discuss the fallout of the last few days for the Los Angeles Lakers, rank the four potential Play-In matchups, how the way the LA's season ends impacts its offseason, the theoretical offseason paths, preview the regular-season finale against the New Orleans Pelicans and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(1:07) What should we make of the last few disastrous days?
(11:12) Ranking the potential four Play-In matchups
(24:38) How does the way the Lakers’ season ends impact their offseason?
(34:38) LA’s three theoretical offseason paths
(48:14) New Orleans Pelicans finale preview
(55:55) Outro

Jovan Buha reacts to the Los Angeles Lakes' 134-120 loss to the Golden State Warriors at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday, April 9, 2024.

Jovan covers Anthony Davis' absence, LeBron James' performance through the flu, how the Lakers' season-long mistakes popped up at the worst time, why LA's previous bad losses from December and January are haunting them now, the different Play-In scenarios and more.

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Chapters:
0:00 Intro
14:53 Takeaway No. 1: The same old mistakes
21:05 Takeaway No. 2: LA’s past comes back to haunt them
27:41 Takeaway No. 3: The No. 9-10 game is likely now
31:25 Outro

In Episode 11, Jovan Buha breaks down the Lakers’ final three games against the Golden State Warriors, Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans. 

Jovan looks at each team’s statistical profile, how they match up with LA and the stakes in each scenario. He also examines the West standings and goes through the tiebreakers and how the Lakers can move up or down in the standings.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(5:29) Golden State Warriors breakdown
(13:08) Memphis Grizzlies breakdown
(15:13) New Orleans Pelicans breakdown
(20:00) My prediction
(20:52) Outro

Jovan Buha reacts to the Los Angeles Lakers' 127-117 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, April 7, 2024.

Jovan covers the significance of this loss, the impact of the absences of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, why the Lakers should feel confident in a potential series against the Timberwolves, the notable performances of Rui Hachimura, Jaxson Hayes and Spencer Dinwiddie, why Tuesday's game against the Golden State Warriors is now a must-win and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(9:14) Takeaway No. 1: A series of bad breaks for LA
(12:15) Takeaway No. 2: The Lakers can beat the Wolves in a playoff series
(17:36) Takeaway No. 3: Tuesday’s game with the Warriors is now a must-win
(21:16) Outro

Jovan Buha reacts to the Los Angeles Lakers' 116-97 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday, April 6, 2024.

Jovan covers the Lakers moving up to No. 8, why the No. 7 vs. No. 8 Play-In game is becoming more realistic, LA's perimeter defense, the ideal pace and rhythm for the Lakers' offense, the importance of Sunday's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(7:19) Takeaway No. 1: The No. 7 and 8 seeds are increasingly realistic
(11:39) Takeaway No. 2: The perimeter defense is improving
(16:37) Takeaway No. 3: This was LA’s ideal pace
(21:43) Outro

In Episode 10, Jovan Buha welcomes Hoops Tonight host Jason Timpf to discuss the Lakers’ road trip, how they match up with the West, why LA should be a higher seed right now, how to integrate Jarred Vanderbilt (if he returns), the ideal playoff rotation and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(3:17) Are the Lakers peaking at the right time again?
(9:27) How would things be different with Rui starting from Day 1?
(18:52) Should anyone in the West scare LA outside of Denver?
(25:55) How big of a difference is No. 9 vs. No. 8?
(33:23) Would LA beat both OKC and Minnesota in Round 1?
(46:50) How would you reintegrate Jarred Vanderbilt back into the rotation?
(59:09) What is the ideal playoff rotation?
(1:12:41) Outro

Jovan Buha to the Los Angeles Lakers' 125-120 win over the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena on Wednesday, April 3, 2024.

Jovan covers why this was a successful road trip, LA's unserious finish vs. Washington, Anthony Davis' dominant performance, the upcoming schedule, the latest with Jarred Vanderbilt and more.

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Chapters:
(0:00) Intro
(5:16) A quick thank you
(6:26) Takeaway No. 1: Recapping a successful road trip
(11:20) Takeaway No. 2: Unserious basketball
(16:08) Takeaway No. 3: Jarred Vanderbilt update
(19:18) Outro