The Los Angeles Lakers went into the NBA Playoffs as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference with legitimate hopes to make a run behind the collective firepower and IQ of Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves. But the Lakers learned quickly that they may be farther away from contending than anticipated, getting sent home in five games in the first round by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Lakers now have a massive offseason ahead of them, as they have to make several moves to turn the roster into a legitimate contender. They need to add size and defense at all positions in order to make the trio of Doncic, James and Reaves work.
Some have said that the Lakers can’t build a contender around that core due to the defensive shortcomings. But former NBA star Blake Griffin doesn’t believe that. He spoke about the Lakers core and what they need to do to be able to contend, via DJ Siddiqi of of BookMaker:
Griffin continued on that the Doncic trade served as a reset of the roster construction, and they now need to reshape the entire thing around their new superstar
The Lakers undoubtedly can build a contender around Doncic and James. However, it’s going to take more than just one move and L.A. is going to have to hit on a few marginal decisions in the offseason. The Dallas Mavericks were able to build a championship contender around Luka by adding size and defense everywhere else. Now, L.A. is going to try to do their own version of that formula.
The Lakers’ trade for Luka Doncic was one of the most seismic deals in the history of the NBA and completely changed the fortunes of their franchise. But it was always going to be a process for head coach JJ Redick to integrate him in the middle of the season as practice time is limited.
Even still, Redick and the Lakers coaching staff did as good a job as possible and the team had an excellent end to the regular season before falling into the playoffs. But now going into next season, Redick will have an entire offseason to better integrate Doncic into the offensive system and has confidence in what he, LeBron James and Austin Reaves will grow into.
