The LeBron James All-NBA (2nd) and Luka Doncic - 24-25 Thread

[nzahir]

I'm just not fan of this move, opportunity cost is massive

Can still get Sharpe tho

Why would we want Sharpe now?

And cant afford him

Sharpe was going to cost likely a few seconds

What was the other option?

Maybe could have built something out better this summer with the 1st and FA, but you would have a worse shot this year to win it all

Now I think we should legit win it all if we're healthy

If we went with just Hayes and got a guy say like Landale for Maxi, then I wouldn't feel this way

Knecht was pretty bad so far this year, just not ready yet and a bad defender, didnt fit

Utah wouldnt move Kessler

I wouldve been good with Knecht for Sharpe and 2-3 2nds. Then gotten another guy with 3-4 2nds I guess, but I like this

[dcstanley]

They should have an elite offense. Luka wanted a lob threat and Mark was already one of the best of that archetype on a hopeless Charlotte team. Is it a stretch to say he's a better offensive player than Lively/Gafford? I don't think so. They should have a pretty strong rebounding group with Luka/Williams. Besides Reaves and Vincent, everyone in the rotation is 6'7 or taller.

Williams' defense, however, leaves a lot to be desired. The impact metrics don't paint him in a favorable light and a lot of smart people that get paid to watch more Hornets games than a sane person should have been critical of his defense for some time now. He has the physical tools to be great on that end but he's been pretty atrocious at protecting the rim. He's also a massive injury risk.

It's a massive overpay but I'm content with the move. They needed a big body and they added one that adds another dimension to the offense. Just gotta hope this is a PJ Washington situation where he looks much more viable in a serious environment.

[nzahir]

Yeah Pelinka overpaid but what does it really matter for LeBron now. That's a lakers after LeBron problem. For now it's a fine move to make, he's got the 4th highest PER in the league and is an above average defender at C.

For this season for sure. Could've build a better team for 25-26 season though

But the offense will be nasty, they already borderline top 10 unit. Now with Doncic and Williams they have a shot for top 3

We literally had to do something if we wanted to really compete

Not just have a shot, but be a potential favorite

[EmpireFalls]

Mark’s defense is not versatile at all, he can only really drop, and he has high hips. Doesn’t have much core or leg strength, gets pushed around. This is not a Jokic stopper.

He does have potential - real potential - on that end, with an insane 9’9” standing reach and great mobility at times. I think he will be good but not this year. Needs a few offseasons and strength training blocks.

He will feast on lobs and offensive boards. Amazing play finisher. Yall got a great player. I’m gonna cry myself to sleep

[nzahir]

Damn, this Mark Williams deal is such a multi-dimensional gamble.

1. Lakers have great scouting department so they definitely know a lot about Williams, but his defensive numbers are really terrible:

67.6 DFG% at rim this year, 65.1 DFG% at rim last year, 62,6 DFG% at rim as a rookie.
51.7 DFG% this year, 53.5 DFG% last year, 47.6 DFG% as a rookie.

It doesn't mean he can't instantly turn it on once he gets to much better team (and coaching) than Hornets, but didn't we see plenty ot athletic centers putting up great stats and not having basketball IQ and motor on defensive end?

2. He's such a great fit for Lakers, one of the best lob threats in the NBA and can't be fouled easily as he's a very decent free throw shooting C.

Doncic-Reaves-LeBron-Williams is the best offensive talent that LeBron has had since 2017. Lakers have spacing, creators, slashers, shooters, vertical threat - this will be an ELITE offensive team.

3. He's such an injury-prone guy and he costs so much, Lakers basically invested most of their assets in him.

Rating range here is quite diversified, lol, it can be a really terrible and a really great move.

-----

I'm not going to complain though, I wouldn't even dream before Christmas that Lakers will end up with Doncic-Reaves-DFS-LeBron-Williams lineup.

They also have Hachimura (shooting over 40% from 3s), Vincent (shooting 40% from 3s since December) on the bench.

I don't think we as LeBron fans could've dreamed about anything better in these twilight LeBron years.

THIS IS THE MAIN POINT GUYS

Most of us thought it was realisitcally over to compete for another ring.

MAYBE we had a shot this year if we made 2 perfect trades with Turner/Kessler and another ball handler. But it was still gona be very tough and needed injuries/matchups to favor us/someone better gets knocked out early

But now we have a legit shot to be favorites for the next few years or in the top 4 teams

Only thought this would be possible if we took a major paycut and went to CLE to finish it up, but man what a turnaround

[LikeABosh]

Mark Williams is almost a year younger than Knecht fwiw

And I wouldn't take poor defensive metrics too seriously when he's on a tanking team

Probably need one more big from...maybe from the buyout market?

[Doug_12]

Not a fan of this move, but there is an underrated aspect in the deal: MW is going to expire in 25/26 as an RFA w/ his rookie contract as a cap hold. This means we will have only Doncic (hopefully), Vanderbilt and Reaves on our books eating up 78 million in the summer of 2026. With MW's cap hold it's still ~84 mils. We can fill our team up from the FA market and then extend him.

[Mos_Heat]

I'm just not fan of this move, opportunity cost is massive

Can still get Sharpe tho

Why would we want Sharpe now?

And cant afford him

Sharpe was going to cost likely a few seconds

You want Jason Hayes as a backup behind they guy who has missed more than 50% games in his career?

They would have to trade a swap directly or trade it for a couple of 2nds

[zimpy27]

Bronny may end up in rotation because of the defense now that Reddish is gone, lakers are low on defensive guards.

[nzahir]

I'm just not fan of this move, opportunity cost is massive

Can still get Sharpe tho

Why would we want Sharpe now?

And cant afford him

Sharpe was going to cost likely a few seconds

You want Jason Hayes as a backup behind they guy who has missed more than 50% games in his career?

They would have to trade a swap directly or trade it for a couple of 2nds

Hayes was kinda killing it vs the Clippers tbh...

I think we should hold some assets, there is still the summer and the future

Also would like to know if Wood is coming back. That is another big

Can move Maxi for Landale if needed, but looking to move Maxi for a guy like Thybulle

And how woudl you even want to acquire Sharpe salary wise. Cant combine Kieff or Milton.

So its either Maxi and find a 3rd team, or Hayes+Wood (so back to just 2 bigs total now with Williams and Sharpe)

[The Master]

They should have an elite offense. Luka wanted a lob threat and Mark was already one of the best of that archetype on a hopeless Charlotte team. Is it a stretch to say he's a better offensive player than Lively/Gafford? I don't think so. They should have a pretty strong rebounding group with Luka/Williams. Besides Reaves and Vincent, everyone in the rotation is 6'7 or taller.

Yeah, 5 assists/100 possessions, 8% TOV and 77 FT% is crazy good for a finisher.

It's a massive overpay but I'm content with the move. They needed a big body and they added one that adds another dimension to the offense. Just gotta hope this is a PJ Washington situation where he looks much more viable in a serious environment.

After few hours: is it that big overpay though? Swap is a semi asset with Luka and if there was a negative consequence of Davis trade - is that these long-term picks lost most of his value, lol. We're basically talking future first and Knecht for starting center.

The problem obviously will be if for defensive/health reasons Williams becomes unable to fulfill this role, but I don't think the price for any starting center would be lower to be honest.

[xb3at band1tx]

Yeah, even if you think it was an overpay, the price they got Luka for was so comically low they are still in the green.

Im content that they got to keep pretty much all their depth intact. I still think their endgame lineup will probably be small doe with Bron at the "5" even if they had a solid center or not.

[Mos_Heat]

Why would we want Sharpe now?

And cant afford him

Sharpe was going to cost likely a few seconds

You want Jason Hayes as a backup behind they guy who has missed more than 50% games in his career?

They would have to trade a swap directly or trade it for a couple of 2nds

Hayes was kinda killing it vs the Clippers tbh...

I think we should hold some assets, there is still the summer and the future

Also would like to know if Wood is coming back. That is another big

Can move Maxi for Landale if needed, but looking to move Maxi for a guy like Thybulle

And how woudl you even want to acquire Sharpe salary wise. Cant combine Kieff or Milton.

So its either Maxi and find a 3rd team, or Hayes+Wood (so back to just 2 bigs total now with Williams and Sharpe)

They don't have assets to move Kleber, so yeah it's Hayes-Wood combo

[dcstanley]

Why would we want Sharpe now?

And cant afford him

Sharpe was going to cost likely a few seconds

You want Jason Hayes as a backup behind they guy who has missed more than 50% games in his career?

They would have to trade a swap directly or trade it for a couple of 2nds

Hayes was kinda killing it vs the Clippers tbh...

I think we should hold some assets, there is still the summer and the future

Also would like to know if Wood is coming back. That is another big

Can move Maxi for Landale if needed, but looking to move Maxi for a guy like Thybulle

And how woudl you even want to acquire Sharpe salary wise. Cant combine Kieff or Milton.

So its either Maxi and find a 3rd team, or Hayes+Wood (so back to just 2 bigs total now with Williams and Sharpe)

They prob need another big. If Williams can't stay healthy they're kind of screwed.

But I like Vando as a backup 5. Luka/Gabe/Rui/DFS/Vando is a viable backup unit. Hayes will probably be in the rotation and he's played well recently but if they want to get value out of Vando he should probably be the only non-shooter in any lineup that he's in. I think they can afford to play Vando at center with the amount of size they have on the wings.

[zimpy27]

I'm just not fan of this move, opportunity cost is massive

Can still get Sharpe tho

Why would we want Sharpe now?

And cant afford him

Sharpe was going to cost likely a few seconds

You want Jason Hayes as a backup behind they guy who has missed more than 50% games in his career?

They would have to trade a swap directly or trade it for a couple of 2nds

Hayes would actually be great as a vertical threat offensively.

This lakers team is offense, no defense.

I mean Jazz have Kessler and are worst defense in the NBA, can't count on one rim protector to make you decent anymore.

[Mos_Heat]

So, how many in here were genuine fans of Luka prior to the trade?

I'll be honest, I've never liked his game. Great player, but also a player with some fatal flaws (extreme ball dominance and lack of defense) that I've always believed would prevent him from winning it all. He's also the biggest crybaby I've ever seen on the basketball court. Very off putting. But hey, he plays with LeBron now, so I'll be rooting for him like no tomorrow (still not a fan though). Lakers also weren't winning anything this season with AD, so I have 0 regrets about the trade. Let's see how things go now.

I liked him in the first 3 seasons, then he went full prime Harden with ball hogging

[Slava]

Bronny may end up in rotation because of the defense now that Reddish is gone, lakers are low on defensive guards.

Schroeder probably gets bought out but we need a SG that’s defensively viable. Bruce Brown has no business in New Orleans but who knows what they are upto.

[zimpy27]

Bronny may end up in rotation because of the defense now that Reddish is gone, lakers are low on defensive guards.

Schroeder probably gets bought out but we need a SG that’s defensively viable. Bruce Brown has no business in New Orleans but who knows what they are upto.

Can't get either as they are above salary that a 2nd apron team can bid on.

[Slava]

Bronny may end up in rotation because of the defense now that Reddish is gone, lakers are low on defensive guards.

Schroeder probably gets bought out but we need a SG that’s defensively viable. Bruce Brown has no business in New Orleans but who knows what they are upto.

Can't get either as they are above salary that a 2nd apron team can bid on.

Brown has to be a trade for Rui and Wood, to open up a roster spot in the process.

[zimpy27]

Schroeder probably gets bought out but we need a SG that’s defensively viable. Bruce Brown has no business in New Orleans but who knows what they are upto.

Can't get either as they are above salary that a 2nd apron team can bid on.

Brown has to be a trade for Rui and Wood, to open up a roster spot in the process.

Yeah maybe. We will see I guess. 10 hours to go.

My read is that Lakers are going in on efficient offense with great rebounding. Similar to what Cavs did with Lebron-Love-TT in 2015-2018.

Just being great at rebounding is a form of defense, an OREB is as good as a steal and a DREB ends an opponent possession. So I think this team will still have a middle of the range D-rating.

PG: Reaves (28) | Vincent (20)
SG: Doncic (36) | Reaves (7) | DFS (5)
SF: DFS (27) | Rui (21)
PF: LeBron (35) | Rui (13)
C : Williams (26) | Vando (22)

This seems like a 8-man rotation team.
The rest is Bronny, Milton, Markieff, Kleber, Wood, Hayes