On the surface, the Lakers are having a great start to the year.

They are 12-4 and sit as the two seed in the West, having found ways to win even with LeBron James missing significant time and Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves also out for games here and there.

Numbers might not lie, but they can lack context. The Lakers have struggled to win against teams perceived as weaker than them, like the Jazz. The reason they’ve struggled isn’t because of defensive miscues, but it’s actually been their offense, particularly their 3-point shooting, that hasn’t been up to par.

In their road win over Utah, Los Angeles shot a woeful 28% from deep. And it wasn’t just a few attempts: the Lakers shot 38 3-pointers and converted only 10.

This wasn’t an anomaly, but instead an early-season trend for the pur

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