Laziness in the Lakers: the Ukrainian and Doncic create a perfect partnership for both.

The only obstacle was his slimness – 102 kg at that time with a height of 216 centimeters. This did not prevent him from making a strong impression on scouts, leading to his selection as the 5th pick, which remains the best result for Ukrainian basketball players to this day.

To summarize, Maryland is an average NCAA team (despite having 4 championships, the last one in 2002). The Terrapins are nowhere near Duke, Kansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgetown, or Connecticut. Therefore, Len's high selection was the best for the university since Steve Francis, who was picked 2nd in the 1999 draft. As we can see, players from Maryland are not frequently chosen in the talent market.

It can be said that Len's career, as a fifth draft pick, has not been successful, but among the lottery picks (1-14) of that draft class, there are names like: Anthony Bennett, Cody Zeller, Nerlens Noel, Troy Burke, Shabazz Muhammad, and Michael Carter-Williams. Yes, the latter was named Rookie of the Year but began to regress as soon as Philadelphia started aiming for at least 20 wins a season.

There's no need to dwell on why things didn't work out or what hindered him. Let's just accept the fact that Oleksiy is still in the NBA.

Moreover, he is now with the strongest team of his career.

Furthermore, he is now in a team that greatly needs the functionality and skill set that the Ukrainian possesses.

Luka Dončić and big men. Sex. Drugs. Rock and roll. Three-point shots. Screens. Pick and roll

Since Luka's arrival in Dallas, the team has struggled with big men: Dwight Powell, Salah Mejri, post-prime DeAndre Jordan, meme-worthy Boban Marjanović, discarded Willie-Cauley Stein, and the aging JaVale McGee.

Kristaps Porziņģis, Maxi Kleber, and Christian Wood are centers in terms of size, but their play in the paint (perhaps except for the Latvian, who was often injured) indicates that they are clearly not a "five" in the classic sense. Moreover, the play under the basket suffered both on their end and the opponent's.

Luka faced similar issues with the national team. The naturalization of not-so-unknowns in Europe Mike Tobey and Josh Nebo did not resolve this either.

However… Luka flourished when he got a mobile big man with a high IQ in Dereck Lively, and later an old-school rim protector in Daniel Gafford. Yes, they are completely "safe" for the opponent from three meters away from the basket and beyond, but they understood their role perfectly: to step out to the arc for a screen that Luka had/could

A) create space for his drive/exchange with a larger/less mobile opponent

B) draw attention and throw an alley-oop

Pick and rolls are one of the fundamentals of basketball, but they only worked perfectly in the Mavericks when centers who understood the Slovenian came on board.

Len doesn't need to reinvent the wheel. Just execute this with Dončić and get your highlights.

Yes, the Ukrainian is not as athletic by nature as Gafford, but he is 8 cm taller (216 vs. 208). Due to his age, Alex may not match Lively's speed, but he compensates (should) for this deficiency with experience.

Symbolically, the best period of Oleksiy's career coincided with his time with the Atlanta Hawks, where the ball was in the hands of Trae Young, who is probably less talented than the Slovenian but just as much a "bright mind" with excellent peripheral vision.

And it’s no surprise that such interaction worked in the "Hawks" with Young and the Ukrainian just as effectively as in the Texas trio.

Less popular pick-and-pop. And Len is better here than Dončić's former partners in Dallas

In this element of the play, the big man does not run to the basket but opens up at the arc.

Lively has the potential to develop a long-range shot. He likely won't become Brook Lopez, who hit 3/31 from beyond the arc in his first 8 seasons, then went on to 1029/2912 (35%), but he has shown he can shoot.

Gafford isn't even close to a sniper. Basketball Reference states that Daniel had only one three-point attempt in 372 games, and, of course, it was unsuccessful.

Although in the last 2.5 seasons, the Ukrainian also hasn’t utilized this (1/11), it’s worth noting that JJ Redick and his staff may recall that Alex can shoot (111/345 for his career).

The Lakers rookie showcased this in a game against his current club following a classic catch-and-shoot.

But he could also punish after defensive "lapses".

45 or 90 degrees? He can also shoot from the corners.

The fact is that for Sacramento, Len was not an option in attack, but rather a 5-10 minute (sometimes more) contributor of good defense/rest for the main center.

No one is saying that something will suddenly change for him in the "purple and gold". But one thing is clear: Hayes is not Sabonis. Oleksiy will get more minutes, which means more opportunities.

He is not Maxi Kleber

In Dallas, the roles of stretch bigs were filled by Maxi Kleber, Davis Bertans, and Christian Wood. Yes, they have better percentages, but in terms of defensive skills – they are (attention! bold statement!) amateurs compared to the Ukrainian.

Oleksiy Len: 11654 minutes in the NBA, 613 blocks.

Maxi Kleber: 9827 minutes, 378 blocks.

Christian Wood: 7858 minutes, 295 blocks.

Davis Bertans: 8546 minutes, 167 blocks.

One could argue that the native of Antratsyt is simply taller. Yes, height is important for blocking, but without skills and a sense of timing, it’s difficult to block opponents.

For instance, 206-centimeter Ben Wallace recorded 2137 blocks over 1088 games, often guarding centers. The 198-centimeter Charles Barkley was also adept at blocking.

Undoubtedly, Len will find it challenging against the agile Shengun, talented Wembanyama, or Nikola "I can do everything" Jokic. But against the likes of Lively and Gafford, or Zubac and Zach Collins, he can become an ideal stopper.

The first pancake is lumpy. Could it have been otherwise?

The away game against Utah marked Oleksiy's debut for the Lakers. The guests struggled, and the Ukrainian also did not showcase his best performance.

Stop. Could it have been different? We understand that there is professionalism and an understanding of the principles of basketball, but each team's playbooks differ. Less than a day passed from the official announcement of his signing to Oleksiy's first game for the club. Where was he supposed to train with his teammates? On a plane to Salt Lake City? Or on a console, playing NBA2k25?

Of course, the nuances of the plays were explained to him. But we mustn't forget that the Lakers, aside from Len, have undergone significant changes. Anthony Davis, Max Christie, Dalton Knecht was a "Schrodinger's basketball player," Kleber is injured