After securing a series win in Game 6 against the Houston Rockets, the Los Angeles Lakers will take on the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the Western Conference Playoffs. With both Jalen Williams and Luka Doncic's availability in doubt, a matchup between two top players at their craft is something to highlight. The league's reigning and favorite to win the Most Valuable Player award, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a former Defensive Player of the Year winner during his time in Boston, Marcus Smart, are two to highlight. In all likelihood, the pair will be matched up with one another during the conference semifinal series. Both players saw success in the first round, but Gilgeous-Alexander's box score reigned supreme. The Kentucky product averaged 33.8 points per game in the four-game series, which currently leads the NBA. Gilgeous-Alexander shot 55.1% from the floor in the series, while also averaging eight assists per game.…