Lakers News: Is LA Making A Mistake With New Starting Five In WCF Game 1?

One Laker might not be too pleased.

Could your Los Angeles Lakers already be making a critical mistake even before tipoff of their Western Conference Finals rematch against the favored Denver Nuggets tonight?

Per Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, Darvin Ham will be trotting out the same lineup that helped his Lakers close out the defending champion Golden State Warriors in style on Friday, for just the second time in these playoffs.

Once again, guard Dennis Schröder will remain in LA's first five, while power forward Jarred Vanderbilt, who had been starting until Game 6 on LA's Conference Semifinal matchup, will stay on the bench once again.

Shrinking LA's starting rotation might be a mistake, as the jumbo-sized Nuggets could run roughshod all over them. 

Schröder will start in the Lakers backcourt next to fellow point guard D'Angelo Russell, while Austin Reaves and LeBron James will each move up a position -- to small forward and power forward, respectively -- and Anthony Davis will continue to man the middle as Los Angeles' starting center.

Though the 6'9" Vanderbilt can't shoot, outside of the occasional wide-open corner three, he can credibly defend all five positions, and can finish around the rack for put backs. Clearly, Ham is prioritizing scoring and ball handling over size and defense. The 6'3" Schröder is no slouch as a defender himself, he just lacks the versatility of Vanderbilt.

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