Ziaire Williams didn’t need long to explain why his shot has looked so clean since he returned to the Lakers lineup.
After missing three games with a foot injury, Williams was back on the floor Monday night in Los Angeles’ 138-117 win over the Miami Heat, and he wasted no time settling in. He came off the bench after starting to open the season, scored nine points, and knocked down 3 of 6 from beyond the arc as the Lakers stretched their win streak to two games.
For Williams, the numbers are tied directly to the company he keeps.
“They’re easy looks, way easier than they’ve been in the past. Like I said, they’re sending two to Luka [Doncic], two to AR [Austin Reaves] every time,” Williams said during his postgame press conference after the win against the Heat.
“It’s just swing, swing, one more and I get to set my feet, get to square up the ball. I put a lot of work this summer.
[I’m] trusting my work, confident in my shot, my shot feels great. I put the reps in, so I just got to trust it.”
That confidence has shown up immediately. Through five games, Williams is posting career highs across the board, shooting 55.9 percent from the field and 46.7 percent from 3-point range.
Before this season, his best marks were 45 percent from the floor and 34.3 percent from deep. His volume has stayed right in line with his usual workload too, at 6.8 field goal attempts and 4.2 3-point tries per game.
He’s also averaging a career-best 10.8 points. Before his return from injury, that number sat at 11.3.
The Lakers need that kind of production from Williams, especially as teams keep throwing extra bodies at Doncic. Early this season, Los Angeles has had trouble handling traps and blitzes, but Monday against Miami, the response was much sharper.
Williams said the key is simple: make the defense pay for overcommitting.
“[It’s] a lot of good reps of practicing. They send two on the ball, there’s always going to be a 4-on-3 advantage on the back side.
It’s just about countering on those advantages, looking opposite for corner threes, finishing at the rim,” Williams said. “The short roll is so important with those blitzes cause it opens up the floor for all of us.
And that’s the beauty of our team. You can put different guys at different spots and everyone is able to make plays.
…
“All our guys are just dynamic and versatile and everyone just wants to make the right play. No one wants to only shoot.
There’s no egos and that’s the fun part about it. We all want to see each other succeed and we have that mindset that good things are gonna happen.”
In Other News...
Lakers Fans Will Get A Kick Out Of This Wild JR Smith Clip
A newly surfaced bodycam clip from Texas has turned a routine arrest into an odd little NBA moment, with former guard JR Smith at the center of it. Smith was booked and later released on bond after being arrested on a charge of assault causing bodily injury tied to an alleged incident involving a family or household member, but the footage has drawn attention for a very different reason: the officer on scene immediately recognized him and drifted into basketball talk.
For Lakers fans, the surreal part is how quickly the conversation moved from a police stop to league chatter. In the exchange, the Royse City officer brings up the blockbuster trade involving LeBron James and Luka Doncic, making the clip feel less like standard arrest footage and more like a strange snapshot of how deeply NBA news has seeped into everyday conversation. It is the kind of offbeat scene that reminds you just how much star power still follows Smith, even in an entirely unrelated moment. [Read more 🡒]
Luka Doncics Hot Start Is Already Drawing All-Time Respect
Luka Doncics opening stretch with the Lakers has already started to sound bigger than a hot streak. Through seven games of the 2026-27 season, he has been piling up points, rebounds and assists at a level that has put him in the center of the early-season conversation, and his latest outing against the Miami Heat only added to the noise.
After that game, the attention turned from the box score to the respect he is drawing around the league. Giannis Antetokounmpo offered high praise for Doncics scoring ability, a reminder that what the Lakers are seeing right now is not just production, but a player whose early run is already earning serious historical company. [Read more 🡒]
Luka Doncic Trade Frustration Just Surfaced In An Unexpected Mavericks Clip
A routine arrest in Royse City, Texas, turned into an unexpected NBA sidebar when bodycam footage from JR Smiths September 29 stop started making the rounds. Smith was pulled over after an automated license plate reader flagged his vehicle because of an active warrant tied to an alleged incident on September 18, but the conversation quickly drifted from the traffic stop into basketball, with the officer bringing up LeBron James and the Luka Doncic trade to the Lakers.
The clip adds another layer to the lingering frustration around Doncics move, even if it comes from an unlikely source. In the footage, the officer offers a personal take on how the deal came together and also references Dallas coaching situation, turning an ordinary police video into a reminder of how much emotion still trails the trade for Mavericks fans and, by extension, for anyone following the Lakers newest star. [Read more 🡒]