What lineups should Lakers use moving forward?

With the regular season winding down and the postseason approaching for the Lakers, what lineups should Darvin Ham lean into during these clutch games?

This is crunch time for the Lakers.

With a handful of games left in the Western Conference, the Lakers are in ninth place and still have ambitions to climb the standings. So, what are the best rotations for the Lakers to use? What works? What hasn't? And how could the potential return of Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent impact things?

Let's take a look at some options

The Starting Five

The tried-and-true unit head coach Darvin Ham has landed on to start games consists of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, D'Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves. With this quintet starting, the Lakers are 12-5 and this lineup is a +40 in 273 minutes. Simply put, it just works.

Can a better group start games?

If Vanderbilt does return, slotting him in to replace Hachimura could prove more effective. It would give the Lakers an elite wing defender and also improve the Lakers' bench scoring problem.

Now, Hachimura has found success with the Lakers as of late, so rocking the boat might not be something you initially think to do, but the fact remains that Hachimura is a weaker defender. In big games, you need your defense to be at its best. Vanderbilt gives you a better defender and a unique one who can guard fast players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and physical wings around the perimeter.

Vanderbilt also provides a better rebounding option, averaging 6.4 in his career compared to Hachimura’s 4.7. Given that the Lakers are 19th in rebounding, they could use that help on the glass.

With Vanderbilt out most of the year, we've rarely seen this lineup. In 91 minutes, the five-man unit has the second-best lineup plus-minus for the team at +24.

Non-LeBron units

LeBron cannot play all 48 minutes and the Lakers have to find ways to survive when the 21-year vet needs a breather.

The most used non-LeBron unit features Davis, Russell, Taurean Prince, Hachimura, and Reaves, who are -5 in 95 minutes.

If you're looking for positive data, the unit that includes Davis, Spencer Dinwiddie, Russell, Hachimura, and Reaves is +6 in 55 minutes of play. That's a small sample size, but with Dinwiddie's recent run of games, maybe they can use him as a scorer when Bron is not in the lineup. The Lakers certainly agree they need this version of Dinwiddie the rest of the way, so perhaps they should try to put him in units where he shines.

Going big with Bron out could be interesting. Can the Lakers, upon Vanderbilt's return, be a more physical side by putting Davis, Hayes, Vanderbilt, Russell, and Reaves on the floor at the same time? I think against potential opponents like the Denver Nuggets and the Sacramento Kings, who have dominant bigs, fighting size with size could be ideal.

Non-Davis minutes

Similar to LeBron, Davis will need breathers as well. In those instances, the Lakers have swapped Hayes for Davis to keep their size even though Hayes can't replicate everything that Davis does.

Los Angeles could opt for a Bron, Dinwiddie, Russell, Prince and Hayes lineup. Adding Dinwiddie gives you some offensive juice and Hayes keeps some size on the floor.

The most used non-Davis lineup has Max Christie instead of Dinwiddie but is -25 in 35 minutes, so maybe the veteran is a better option over the sophomore Christie.

A Bron, Hachimura, Reaves, Reddish, Prince,and Hayes lineup has been used for 27 minutes in seven games and is a +16 on the season. It is a nice balance, giving you a nice scoring threat with Hachimura, keeping size with Hayes and you have your defensive anchors with Reddish and Prince.

LeBron and Rui paired well together when Davis sat during last season's playoffs, so it makes sense that Hachimura will be on the floor when the Lakers are looking for an offensive boost.

When one of your two big stars is out, you’ll never fully replicate what’s missing, but these options are the best available and can hold down the fort while Davis misses a handful of minutes.

Closing squad

Ideally, how you start is how you finish. That's the unit you trust, and with the game on the line, you go to them again. This rings true for the Lakers, as their current starting lineup has the second-most fourth-quarter minutes at 41 minutes. Their previous starting five has the most final frame time, clocking in 49 minutes.

The good news for Ham and the Lakers is both closing options have performed well. The original group is +19 on the season, and the newest lineup is +14.

You can’t play these five guys all 12 minutes though, so what other lineups need to be used crunch time?

Ham tends to go defensive when things are tight. In the win against the Sixers, he made Hachimura a DNP in the fourth and went with guys like Dinwiddie and Reddish instead.

You can also expect a similar decision to be made if Russell is having a poor game or if Reaves is struggling to score or handle the ball. Both players were benched earlier this season and while they've now secured their roles and playing time, it's clear if struggles are happening and the result is in the balance, a change will be made.

Unfortunately, Russell suffered this fate on Mar. 2 against the Nuggets. He once again struggled against Denver and spent most of the fourth on the bench, while Reddish played over 10 minutes and Dinwiddie played six in the fourth.

Hopefully, things never have to go that route, and Ham will feel good using his best players. If Vanderbilt does return, he's the only player I'd feel comfortable using in crunch time who hasn’t played under that pressure this season. Putting him in instead of Hachimura to give you better wing defense.

It may not feel like it, but this year's Lakers have already reached heights last season's iteration never did. They are currently seven games above .500, a feat they never achieved last season despite reaching the Western Conference Finals.

Now, whether the Lakers are worse this season or is the Western Conference just better is open to interpretation, this team has demonstrated an ability to play well. They've won the NBA In-Season Tournament, have key wins against top teams like the Bucks and Celtics and will likely play basketball past the regular season.

For them to get back to the NBA's final four or reach their maximum potential, Ham has to tinker with the lineups, pushing the right buttons to pull off some upsets and perform beyond what their record indicates they're capable of. He did it last season and is being asked to do it again.

Ideally, Ham's sequel will be even better than the original. If it's not, we might not get to see the entire trilogy completed, but that's a story to unpack in the offseason.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.