After picking the Los Angeles Lakers to emerge from the Western Conference, ESPN’s Shannon Sharpe doubled down on his take in light of the Lakers’ blowout win against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Sharpe also took a shot at the Thunder’s lockdown defender, Lu Dort. The Lakers defeated the Thunder 126-99 on Sunday and sent a message that a potential playoff series between the two teams could be closer than some think, favoring Luka Doncic’s new team.

Despite Oklahoma City’s 16-game lead over Los Angeles atop the Western Conference standings, Sharpe is picking the Lakers as his surprise team to win the West. And after Doncic’s impressive 30 points on 11-of-20 shooting, including five threes, seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals, Sharpe was unimpressed by Dort’s defensive presence on Luka, per ESPN’s First Take.

“Who [are] you [going to] put on Luka [Doncic]? Lou Dort? It [doesn’t] matter,” Sharpe said. “Divorce court, child support, Lou Dort. Lakers in 5. We got that.”

Shannon Sharpe says it’s a significant advantage in the Lakers’ matchup against the Thunder. Doncic in the backcourt gives the Lakers a high-caliber scoring guard whose playmaking abilities exceeded expectations in their 126-99 blowout win against Oklahoma City.

Doncic’s dominating stat line, including a game-high 30 points on 11-of-20 attempts, including 5-of-11 from deep, seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals, catapulted the Lakers to a lopsided victory at the Paycom Center. The Lakers finished shooting at 54.8%, including 22-of-40 threes, while Lu Dort's defense didn't little to deter Doncic.

LeBron James' humble take on Lakers’ blowout win vs. Thunder

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Lakers All-Star LeBron James says his team hasn’t reached its potential despite a blowout win. James says the Lakers still have plenty of work ahead between now and the postseason, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

“We’ve been pretty good against some of the better teams this year, and we haven’t been as good as some of the teams that’s below .500,” James said. “But this is a great team to test out to see where you are. But ultimately, it’s about our habits. We have to continue to push our habits. They know who they are. They know what they’re going to be in the postseason. We’re still trying to figure it out, you know?

“With our lineups, with us all getting acclimated to what Luka wants to do. A.R. [Austin Reaves], myself, and make sure we keen on everybody else on the team, and make sure we hold each other accountable.” James concluded.

The Lakers will be able to hand the Thunder their third consecutive loss in their rematch on Tuesday.