Short-handed Lakers searching for new 9-man postseason rotation  

The Lakers are searching. 

For their first win since Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves were ruled out for the remainder of the NBA’s regular season. 

For the right formula that they can depend on with their star guards sidelined.

For a traditional nine-man rotation that they can take into their first-round playoff series, with the hopes Doncic or Reaves will return at some point during the postseason.

To see the Lakers (50-29) get blown out by the league-leading Thunder, 123-87, for the second time in five days wasn’t a surprise, especially considering they were also without LeBron James, Marcus Smart and Jaxson Hayes in addition to Doncic and Reaves.

But the frustrations of their current reality, just one week after being one of the league’s hottest teams for 4 ½ weeks, were displayed.

Coach JJ Redick called a timeout 2 ½ minutes into the game, quickly yanking Rui Hachimura from the game after Hachimura “didn’t do his job,” Redick said. 

Redick called a timeout 16 seconds into the second quarter before a verbal back-and-forth broke out between him and Jarred Vanderbilt, who was benched for the remainder of the game following the exchange after playing five minutes. 

“We’ve got to find nine guys that are all in on us fighting and willing to go out on whatever metaphor you want to use — I don’t want to use a war metaphor in this time — but whatever you got to do to go out and fight and be all in on the team,” Redick said. “We’ll find the nine guys. It’s a great opportunity for us over the next three games to find those guys.”

And if the Lakers’ last two games were any indication, there’s a lot of playing time up for grabs.

“Those sort of spots are — they’re open,” Redick said. “Similar to what we’ve done when we’ve been healthy at [center], we’ll play the [center] that is all in that day, and we’ll figure out who that is.”

Realistically, the Lakers have most of their Doncic-, Reaves-less rotation figured out.

James, Smart, Hayes, Hachimura, Deandre Ayton, Luke Kennard and Jake LaRavia have played and been in the main rotation every game they’ve been available for the Lakers this season.

That’s unlikely to change, putting the Lakers at seven rotation players without Doncic and Reaves.

But what about the final two spots?

Up for grabs between Vanderbilt, Adou Thiero, Bronny James, Kobe Bufkin, Maxi Kleber and Dalton Knecht.

Two-way players Drew Timme, Chris Manon and Nick Smith Jr. can be in the regular-season rotation but aren’t eligible to play during the postseason unless they’re converted to standard NBA deals. 

Bufkin and Knecht can likely be ruled out of the rotation; neither has gotten regular playing time even when the team has dealt with multiple injuries.

That leaves Vanderbilt and Kleber as the players who’ll most likely fill out the rotation, with Thiero and Bronny James having an outside shot.

Even though Vanderbilt has gone through significant stretches of not receiving regular playing time, and Tuesday’s altercation between him and Redick stemmed from a “confluence of things,” he’s still a veteran player whom the Lakers have leaned on more than most of their less experienced players.

The same applies for Kleber, who unlocks some of the team’s bigger lineups when he slots next to Ayton or Hayes.

There are three regular-season games left: The Lakers play the Warriors in San Francisco on Thursday before hosting the Suns on Friday and the Jazz on Sunday. 

Plenty of time for the team’s younger players, including Thiero, who had 10 points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal against the Thunder, to make their case.

“Just trying to go out there and keep building my own confidence and building the coaches’ confidence to put more trust in me,” Thiero said. “And show what I can do in those situations.”

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