Former Starter Turned Afterthought Lonnie Walker IV Leads Lakers at the Most Opportune Time

L.A. has been able to rely on its bench throughout the NBA playoffs. This time, it has Golden State on the ropes.

On Monday, when the Lakers needed a big shot, they turned to … Lonnie Walker IV.

When they needed timely free throws, they got them from … Lonnie Walker IV.

When they needed athleticism, perimeter defense and an answer for Stephen Curry, they turned to …

Lonnie Walker IV?

Golden State’s season is on the brink because of—you guessed it—Lonnie Walker IV, the Lakers’ former starter turned afterthought who reemerged in coach Darvin Ham’s Game 3 rotation and scored 15 fourth-quarter points in Game 4 to power Los Angeles to a 104–101 win and 3–1 series lead in the Western Conference semifinals.

“This is something I’ve been dreaming of doing,” Walker said. “Not just being a part of the playoffs, but impacting it.”

Walker scored 15 points in the fourth quarter to help lead the Lakers past the Warriors.  :: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

Added Ham, “He was a huge force tonight.”

Through three quarters, the Lakers appeared determined to fumble this game away. LeBron James and Anthony Davis had 42 points on 50% shooting entering the fourth quarter … and L.A. still trailed by seven. Golden State’s Klay Thompson was struggling. Teammate Jordan Poole was worse. The Lakers were winning the free throw battle, but not by much. Golden State entered the final period with a lead and the greatest shooter in NBA history heating up.

L.A. needed something.

In Walker, they got it.

A three-pointer started it 15 seconds into the fourth. Then a layup. A short jumper was followed by a 22-footer just in front of the three-point line. When Curry scored, it was Walker who answered. A seven-foot floater tied the game with four minutes remaining, and a 15-foot jumper gave the Lakers a lead with just under two minutes left. With 15 seconds to play, Walker knocked down two free throws to give L.A. its final margin. When the buzzer sounded, James and Davis rushed to Walker and hugged him.

“Game ball definitely goes to him,” said James. “We don’t win without him.”

The Lakers have had some unlikely heroes in these playoffs. Walker is the unlikeliest. He was a fixture in the Lakers’ rotation in the first half of the season. He started 32 games. He averaged 13.2 points. But a knee injury sidelined him for most of January. He returned just as GM Rob Pelinka was reshaping the roster. Walker lost his place in the rotation and began racking up DNPs. In L.A.’s first-round series against Memphis, Walker played just 15 minutes.

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“I think the hardest thing of being able to play a lot and then not playing at all is sticking with it,” Walker said. “There’s a lot of uncontrollable things that you can't control, and you just got to take it day to day, stack the days, and every single day you're trying to be better than who you were yesterday. So that's what I'm always trying to accomplish, is just to reach my best self.”

In the fourth, the Lakers needed Walker’s offense. All game, they needed his defense. Walker was part of the defensive effort against Thompson, who finished 3-of-11 from the floor. He took turns defending Poole. Poole went 0-for-4. The Warriors committed 16 turnovers Monday. Walker’s two steals accounted for a pair of them.

It wasn’t just Walker. Down the stretch, the Lakers tightened up. They trailed by three points with three minutes to play. They allowed two the rest of the game. Late in the fourth quarter, Davis found himself switched onto Curry. He forced Curry into a missed 18-footer. When Draymond Green rebounded it, Davis hounded Curry into an errant 30-footer. On the Warriors’ final possession, Davis intercepted a Green pass.

“The relentlessness, it brings a smile to my face,” Ham said. “Makes me feel fuzzy and warm. I happened to be a part of, as a player, one of the all-time greatest defenses I think the NBA's ever seen, the ’03–04 Pistons. … It wasn't pretty most nights, but we figured out a way, and a lot of it was due to our getting stops. … That’s one of the first things I wanted to check the box on. Our competitiveness, us being together and us being accountable, and it all starts on a defensive end that gives you a chance each and every night.”

None of it matters without Walker, who joins Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and D’Angelo Russell among Lakers rotation players who have had breakout games this postseason. Walker said getting dropped from Ham’s rotation didn’t break him.

“At every single level that I've encountered, there has always had a lot of adversities,” said Walker. The key, he said, was “weathering the storm.” He stayed in the gym. He continued to be, he said, “a great teammate.” Ham said he saw a player who was always positive. One waiting for his time to come.

“I'm only 24,” Walker said. “This journey, this chapter in my life is only one chapter of many. Understanding that I'm trying to reach my best self, most importantly. When I was a kid, I always wondered how I would be when I’m 24, and I wonder [now] what I'm going to be when I’m 30 or 45. And that all comes with stacking the days, day by day, and reaching my best self first and foremost. If I’m not giving it 100 percent, then that’s selfish on my side because I'm giving everyone else 60, 70, 80%.

“So, truth be told, it might sound narcissistic or whatnot, but I’m in love with myself and I want to be my best self, and I think that’s the greatest prize of it all, is that I’m ambitious and I’m eager to be where LeBron and AD [are] and become a star.”

For now, the Lakers will be thrilled if he can play a role. Walker’s emergence adds to their depth. “We have a lot of firepower offensively,” Walker said. “And we have some great defenders.” He’s another young, athletic body Ham can deploy on Golden State’s backcourt and a shooter James has faith in. The Warriors won’t be easy to put away, but Los Angeles continues to find new ways to beat them.

“I know my value,” Walker said. “I know what I’m capable of doing. And by the grace of God and a lot of hard work and sacrifices and time in the gym, the fruition came today.”