Around the NBA II

Lakers really did trade unprotected picks in 2022 and 2025 plus a pick swap in 2023 didn't they? I don't fault them for going all in with how open the top of the league is gonna be next year after the Warriors' injuries, but they really opened themselves to a Billy King situation, after most people thought no team would ever dare to follow that cautionary tale again. It could end horribly for them.

Max Headrom · Post #1478 » by **Max Headrom** » Mon Jun 17, 2019 8:48 pm

QRich3 wrote:Lakers really did trade unprotected picks in 2022 and 2025 plus a pick swap in 2023 didn't they? I don't fault them for going all in with how open the top of the league is gonna be next year after the Warriors' injuries, but they really opened themselves to a Billy King situation, after most people thought no team would ever dare to follow that cautionary tale again. It could end horribly for them.

And make no mistake, Bron and AD being Lakers is all Klutch sports. They still have idiots in the front office that have no clue what they're doing so I'm banking that they definitely screw this up with Rob Lowe and the Rambis couple running the show...

esqtvd · Post #1479 » by **esqtvd** » Mon Jun 17, 2019 9:54 pm

Max Headrom wrote:
QRich3 wrote:Lakers really did trade unprotected picks in 2022 and 2025 plus a pick swap in 2023 didn't they? I don't fault them for going all in with how open the top of the league is gonna be next year after the Warriors' injuries, but they really opened themselves to a Billy King situation, after most people thought no team would ever dare to follow that cautionary tale again. It could end horribly for them.

And make no mistake, Bron and AD being Lakers is all Klutch sports. They still have idiots in the front office that have no clue what they're doing so I'm banking that they definitely screw this up with Rob Lowe and the Rambis couple running the show...

That's a LOT of eggs in one basket. I'm still wary of the best player on a bad team, and of course the Lakers are finished for a decade if he breaks down. They may be finished anyway if they can't somehow fill out an 8-man rotation. That was the undoing of the CP-BG Clippers, and also the Sixers this year.

https://lakeshowlife.com/2019/06/17/los-angeles-lakers-5-concerns-anthony-davis-trade/3/

Max Headrom · Post #1480 » by **Max Headrom** » Mon Jun 17, 2019 10:08 pm

esqtvd wrote:
Max Headrom wrote:
QRich3 wrote:Lakers really did trade unprotected picks in 2022 and 2025 plus a pick swap in 2023 didn't they? I don't fault them for going all in with how open the top of the league is gonna be next year after the Warriors' injuries, but they really opened themselves to a Billy King situation, after most people thought no team would ever dare to follow that cautionary tale again. It could end horribly for them.

And make no mistake, Bron and AD being Lakers is all Klutch sports. They still have idiots in the front office that have no clue what they're doing so I'm banking that they definitely screw this up with Rob Lowe and the Rambis couple running the show...

That's a LOT of eggs in one basket. I'm still wary of the best player on a bad team, and of course the Lakers are finished for a decade if he breaks down. They may be finished anyway if they can't somehow fill out an 8-man rotation. That was the undoing of the CP-BG Clippers, and also the Sixers this year.

But, there are still some nagging doubts whether he is truly THAT good. To begin with, his teams have made the playoffs in only 2 of his 7 seasons. Shouldn’t an elite star lead his team to better results than that? Virtually all of the league’s other top 10 players (arguably Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Russell Westbrook, Paul George and LeBron) have done better in that regard.

Then, AD has averaged only 66 games per year in his seven seasons, which means he typically misses 16 games. That doesn’t exactly make him injury-prone, but it’s not a ringing endorsement of his ability to stay healthy either.

...

For the Lakers, much will depend on how the roster is filled. Heading into free agency, the Lakers roster consists of Davis, James, Kuzma, Moe Wagner and Isaac Bonga. Yep, that’s it, just five players.

That means that 10 more players will have to be added. And the Lakers have no picks remaining in the upcoming draft. Also, the team probably won’t count much on Bonga, who will turn 20 just after the season begins, played limited minutes in his rookie season and is still viewed as a project.

The Lakers have perhaps $34 million remaining under the salary cap. They might use most of it for a single player such as Kemba Walker, or split it among multiple players. They’ll almost certainly end up using the veteran’s minimum for someone. But it looks like much of the roster will be filled by veterans willing to accept lower dollar contracts like JaVale McGee and Michael Beasley did this past season along with a few G-League quality players.

Some say so what, there’s so much top-end talent it won’t matter. That assumes the Lakers will be completely healthy this coming season. Is that likely with a soon-to-be 35-year-old James, who was sidelined for 27 games this past year? And as previously mentioned, AD typically misses 16 games a season.

So yes, roster depth does matter. And chances are good that the Lakers will have a fairly weak bench this coming season.

https://lakeshowlife.com/2019/06/17/los-angeles-lakers-5-concerns-anthony-davis-trade/3/

I've said for a couple of years now, AD gets his numbers but he doesn't affect the game when it comes to WINNING because he usually fades in the 4th

He reminds me of a more athletic Kevin Love in Minnesota that put up monster numbers but the team didn't win.

Also, we saw what Bosh and Love became playing with Bron, spot up shooters and their numbers dipped considerably...