Jul 11, 2024, 08:00 ET
For the first time since 2020, the Lakers enter an NBA season not being the winningest franchise in history. Can LeBron James and Anthony Davis lead the team to another title?
When the Boston Celtics lifted the NBA championship trophy for the 18th time this June, officially becoming the winningest team in league history again. The event hit hard in Los Angeles, where the Lakerseternal rivals, now find themselves again in the shadow of the historic team of Bill Russell, Larry Bird y Paul Pierce.
To close the gap, the Lakers have been forced to make several changes. The first to be sacrificed was the coach. Darwin Hamwho was fired after two seasons with the Californian team. In his place comes the former player and ESPN commentator, JJ Redickwho takes the reins of the team without having had any previous experience as a coach.
In the Draft, they arrived Dalton Knechta talented wing from the University of Tennessee, and Bronny Jamesthe stem of LeBron James which will allow the NBA to have its first father-son duo in history to play simultaneously.
But what are the team’s strengths and weaknesses for next season?
Preseason form
2023-24 Record: 47-35
Playoffs: They fell in the first round to Denver, 4-1
Coach: JJ Redick (first season)
Draft: Dalton Knecht (SF, Tennessee), Bronny James (SG, USC) Free agency: LeBron James (returning), Max Christie (returning), Taurean Prince (signed with Milwaukee Bucks)
New coach, new hopes
Since 1976, five coaches have won an NBA title in their first season: Paul Westhead, Pat Riley, Steve Kerr, Tyronn Lue and Nick Nurse. Westhead and Riley did it with the Lakers, so it wouldn’t be a stretch to think that JJ Redick could do the same next season.
“I want to be a coach of the Lakers“I want to be a great coach in the NBA, and I want to win championships,” Redick said during the press conference where he was introduced.
At your disposal, you will have Anthony Davisone of the best players in the league and one of the best centers of the 21st century as its anchor. Davis played 76 games last season, the most since joining the Lakers in 2019. Alongside him, LeBron Jameswho will complete 22 seasons in the NBA, an unusual number considering that he continues to perform at a superlative level at almost 40 years of age (he turns 40 on December 29).
James and Redick debuted a podcast in March of this year, planting the seeds for their future collaboration. On their show, they covered topics from the history and current events of the league, displaying good chemistry and compatibility in their ideas about the sport. Now, as coach and player, they will look to bring those characteristics to the court.
In 2023-24, the Lakers won 47 games, just enough for a seventh-place finish in the conference. In the first round of the playoffs, they were dominated by the Denver Nuggetsfalling 4-1. The bar will be higher this year, despite Redick’s lack of experience.
The James: A LeBron Dream
With the 55th selection of the NBA Draft 2024the Lakers selected Bronny Jameswho instantly became one of the most celebrated second-round picks in league history. LeBron’s eldest son was a high-end prospect entering college basketball at USC, but in July 2023, he was discovered to have a congenital heart defect, which kept him out for nearly five months. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>
He played just 25 games, started six, and averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in his college career. Still, James was drafted by the Lakersthanks in large part to his father’s desire to play with him before he retired, thus becoming the first father and son to play in the NBA at the same time.
In his debut with the Lakers in the NBA Summer LeagueJames Jr. scored four points, had two assists and two rebounds. Immediately afterward, he was ruled out of the second game on the schedule due to swelling in his left knee. The amount of media attention he’s received suggests that, like his father, Bronny’s every move will be under scrutiny.
“Bronny has earned this, Bronny has earned this through his hard work,” Redick said after introducing his rookies.
At some point we will see LeBron and his son together on the court, but Bronny is expected to spend most of his time with the South Bay Lakersthe Lakers’ affiliate in the G LeagueWith their first-round pick, Los Angeles selected Dalton Knecht, who was projected by many to finish in the top 10. The Lakers took him with the 17th pick, and the 23-year-old will compete for minutes in the rotation.
Meanwhile, the elder James signed with the Lakers to return to the team as a free agent. He will make $101.55 million over the next two seasons, with an option to opt out of the contract in 2025. James is just one of two players in the entire league – along with Bradley Beal from Phoenix – in having a clause to refuse any change.
LeBron took $3 million less than he was entitled to in his contract to keep the Lakers from falling under the league’s severe budget restriction for teams spending more than $188.9 million a year on players. That will allow them some flexibility in continuing to build their roster.
What is lacking?
If the Lakers want to match Boston this season, they will need to bring in help for James and Davis – who now have to deal in the West not only with Denver, which won the title in 2023, but also with Dallas, who reached the Finals this year and just added Klay Thompson to his squad, together with Kyrie Irving y Luka Doncic.
That looks difficult at the moment, as they are over the salary cap for next season. One rumored solution would be to trade Austin Reavesthe talented shooting guard who will earn 13 million dollars next season, or D’Angelo Russellthe team’s mostly starting point guard who will earn $18.6 million this year.
Both could go to teams that offer three-and-D players. The Lakers finished 15th and 16th in offense and defense, respectively, last season, so players who can anchor both ends of the floor are a top priority.
25-year-old point guard Gary Trent Jr., who was with the Los Angeles Dodgers last season, Toronto Raptorshas emerged as an option for the team according to analysts around the league. Spencer Dinwiddie, a 31-year-old point guard who spent the latter part of the 2023-24 season with the Lakers, is being considered to return to the team if Trent’s deal is not reached. Former Boston Celtics All-Star Gordon Hayward has also been named as an option.
If they do, they’ll still have to rely on the availability of LeBron and AD again, as well as navigate a tough conference that also features Minnesota and Oklahoma City as young, up-and-coming teams.
2024-07-11 12:00:00
#Lakers #analysis #moves #season
Related