Lakers...Deepest Team in the League Now?

[McBubbles]

The problem is that "the organic way" means trusting your GM and owner, who you may not like, respect or trust, and then 15 years zooms by and you have no rings and no respect from the league fan base at all.

All we ask for is not to leave a team after every loss to tamper with other players using klutch. Seriously how could some of you entertain him as goat when he dips whenever the going gets tough to form another super team

Exactly.

He is not even in the GOAT discussion

You guys legitimately sound like children.

[DonaldSanders]

To me the Lakers will be worse. No Rondo, no Dwight. The replacements aren't as impactful.

The new Lakers are 2nd options on 7th and 8th seeds? I find that to be a huge stretch. Deeper maybe for the regular season, just plain worse for the playoffs.

If they sign Marc Gasol this obviously changes everything.

Schröder or Rondo?
Trez or Dwight?
Wes or DGreen?

You are right, we are getting younger and more athletic.

I'd prefer Rondo, Dwight, and Wes Matthews.

Montrez was -70 vs. the Nuggets, Howard +42. Zubac was +32.
LMAO

Schröder's advance stats are very average in the RS and playoffs. Rondo's are average in the RS too, but they are well above average in the playoffs. Hence "playoff Rondo".

Stats show the Lakers got weaker for the playoffs.

[Liam_Gallagher]

Right now they have to be. Brooklyn is getting a post-achilles Durant who's not a spring chicken anymore. That's like LeBron tearing his achilles in 2017.

G - James [35]/Shroeder [33]
G - Matthews [24]/Caruso [22]
F - Caldwell-Pope [28]/Horton-Tucker
F - Davis [37]/Kuzma [24]
C - McGee [10]/Harrell [27]

Kuzma will get some PT at SF and I'm sure he'll be fine with that.

End of game death lineup: Shroeder, Caruso, KCP, James, Davis

[Blazer1776]

Right now they have to be. Brooklyn is getting a post-achilles Durant who's not a spring chicken anymore. That's like LeBron tearing his achilles in 2017.

G - James [35]/Shroeder [33]
G - Matthews [24]/Caruso [22]
F - Caldwell-Pope [28]/Horton-Tucker
F - Davis [37]/Kuzma [24]
C - McGee [10]/Harrell [27]

Kuzma will get some PT at SF and I'm sure he'll be fine with that.

End of game death lineup: Shroeder, Caruso, KCP, James, Davis

I would argue that Portland is the deepest (I still think the Lakers are by large the favorites)

PG: Lillard, Simons
SG: McCollum, Trent Jr, Hood
SF: Jones Jr, Hood, Covington, Nassir
PF: Covington, Collins, Melo, Nassir
C: Nurkic, Kanter, Collins

Still have the BAE to use also

[PKABOOICU]

The Lakers are somehow younger AND better than last year.

The only real loss I see thus far is Rondo's IQ. We are replacing his play with Dennis Schroder- which is better in every facet of the game except in the brain.

Wes>Green. This is no contest. Everyone who watched the Lakers play last year knew how bad Green was. He was absolutely terrible for 5 million, let alone 15 million.

Harrell>Dwight, because we already have McGee. Ive always said it makes 0 sense to have BOTH, Dwight and McGee on the same roster because they are essentially the same player. Swapping Dwight for Harrell was a no brainer. Harrell can't guard the likes of Jokic, but he will be perfectly fine in Vogel's system as opposed to Doc

[toodarkmark]

I love how Dwight Howard, who was out of the league and considered done, is better then the 6th Man of the Year. I like how Rajon Rondo, who gave up on Dallas, who was signed for nothing because he was considered done, is better then the man who finished second in 6th man voting.

I'm sorry, I just can't take these things seriously. Two years ago people were clowning the Lakers for signing Rondo for nothing, considering it a joke. You know why Rondo and Howard have so much clout now? Because Lebron and AD were their teammates. Now Lakers are getting, LITERALLY, the two best bench players in the NBA. And Dennis was only a bench guy because he was behind Chris Paul. Just stop, get help. Rondo and Howard were lucky as hell to be Lakers. Lakers have upgraded at PG, at SG, and PF. Howard wanted to come back and they were like nah. Sorry for the misunderstanding guy. They still are going to sign another big, and then some veterans.

[LakersSoul]

Still need a big center:

Enter..... Whiteside!!

[DNice68]

I love how Dwight Howard, who was out of the league and considered done, is better then the 6th Man of the Year. I like how Rajon Rondo, who gave up on Dallas, who was signed for nothing because he was considered done, is better then the man who finished second in 6th man voting.

I'm sorry, I just can't take these things seriously. Two years ago people were clowning the Lakers for signing Rondo for nothing, considering it a joke. You know why Rondo and Howard have so much clout now? Because Lebron and AD were their teammates. Now Lakers are getting, LITERALLY, the two best bench players in the NBA. And Dennis was only a bench guy because he was behind Chris Paul. Just stop, get help. Rondo and Howard were lucky as hell to be Lakers. Lakers have upgraded at PG, at SG, and PF. Howard wanted to come back and they were like nah. Sorry for the misunderstanding guy. They still are going to sign another big, and then some veterans.

Agree with everything here!

[NPZ]

Right now they have to be. Brooklyn is getting a post-achilles Durant who's not a spring chicken anymore. That's like LeBron tearing his achilles in 2017.

G - James [35]/Shroeder [33]
G - Matthews [24]/Caruso [22]
F - Caldwell-Pope [28]/Horton-Tucker
F - Davis [37]/Kuzma [24]
C - McGee [10]/Harrell [27]

Kuzma will get some PT at SF and I'm sure he'll be fine with that.

End of game death lineup: Shroeder, Caruso, KCP, James, Davis

I would argue that Portland is the deepest (I still think the Lakers are by large the favorites)

PG: Lillard, Simons
SG: McCollum, Trent Jr, Hood
SF: Jones Jr, Hood, Covington, Nassir
PF: Covington, Collins, Melo, Nassir
C: Nurkic, Kanter, Collins

Still have the BAE to use also

That's cool. Porty was deep in 2000. Were you around for "Two Deep" vs "Too Deep"? Port's problem is that they have had deep sounding teams a number of times (even the 2004 team had a lot of named players; I was watching that 2004 Kobe game winner game and I thought at one point, "Damn, Porty appears stacked this year."), but there seems to be diminishing returns at more than one point on the floor. I remember in 00, Bonzi, Detlef and Augmon all scoring on Kobe in the post on 3 straight trips. They had a lot of named 2 and 3 types, but no real superstar. Pip was old. Sheed was a killer, but thankfully he was mental or otherwise you might've actually pulled it off. Damon Stoud and Sabonis weren't turrible either at 1/5, but you know what happened. They played like a mess and most of those Fs weren't appreciably better than the next. I remember the 95/6 Blazers seeming to be deep w/ big Fs and the Lakers would often lose big up there. We had a 46 pt loss in 95, the final year of that 10,000 fan shoebox Memorial Coliseum you had. We got outrebounded like a mofo by old Buck and all the big, tough Fs. Blazers have a historical affinity for forwards. The thing that differentiates the Lakers from the Blazers or another deep team is Brawn and AD, primarily. Same thing as in 2000. When it came down to it, Shaq and Kobe were worth more than all Porty's depth at 2/3. We seem to plug in pieces that play well as a group instead of as individuals in the playoffs.

[NoZoLakers]

To me the Lakers will be worse. No Rondo, no Dwight. The replacements aren't as impactful.

The new Lakers are 2nd options on 7th and 8th seeds? I find that to be a huge stretch. Deeper maybe for the regular season, just plain worse for the playoffs.

If they sign Marc Gasol this obviously changes everything.

Schröder or Rondo?
Trez or Dwight?
Wes or DGreen?

You are right, we are getting younger and more athletic.

I'd prefer Rondo, Dwight, and Wes Matthews.

Montrez was -70 vs. the Nuggets, Howard +42. Zubac was +32.
LMAO

Schröder's advance stats are very average in the RS and playoffs. Rondo's are average in the RS too, but they are well above average in the playoffs. Hence "playoff Rondo".

Stats show the Lakers got weaker for the playoffs.

stats nerd also said rondo dont fit with lebron prior to last season start, stat said lakers had one of the weakest supporting cast as well

[NPZ]

Schröder or Rondo?
Trez or Dwight?
Wes or DGreen?

You are right, we are getting younger and more athletic.

I'd prefer Rondo, Dwight, and Wes Matthews.

Montrez was -70 vs. the Nuggets, Howard +42. Zubac was +32.
LMAO

Schröder's advance stats are very average in the RS and playoffs. Rondo's are average in the RS too, but they are well above average in the playoffs. Hence "playoff Rondo".

Stats show the Lakers got weaker for the playoffs.

stats nerd also said rondo dont fit with lebron prior to last season start, stat said lakers had one of the weakest supporting cast as well

A majority of fans laughed and joked about Rondo all the way to the playoffs. Full RS where he was viewed by almost everyone as being complete dog shizzle. Suddenly, this epiphany where he's irreplaceable is nice, but where was it all RS when I posted numerous times that the hate is grossly far out of whack.

[Blazer1776]

Right now they have to be. Brooklyn is getting a post-achilles Durant who's not a spring chicken anymore. That's like LeBron tearing his achilles in 2017.

G - James [35]/Shroeder [33]
G - Matthews [24]/Caruso [22]
F - Caldwell-Pope [28]/Horton-Tucker
F - Davis [37]/Kuzma [24]
C - McGee [10]/Harrell [27]

Kuzma will get some PT at SF and I'm sure he'll be fine with that.

End of game death lineup: Shroeder, Caruso, KCP, James, Davis

I would argue that Portland is the deepest (I still think the Lakers are by large the favorites)

PG: Lillard, Simons
SG: McCollum, Trent Jr, Hood
SF: Jones Jr, Hood, Covington, Nassir
PF: Covington, Collins, Melo, Nassir
C: Nurkic, Kanter, Collins

Still have the BAE to use also

That's cool. Porty was deep in 2000. Were you around for "Two Deep" vs "Too Deep"? Port's problem is that they have had deep sounding teams a number of times (even the 2004 team had a lot of named players; I was watching that 2004 Kobe game winner game and I thought at one point, "Damn, Porty appears stacked this year."), but there seems to be diminishing returns at more than one point on the floor. I remember in 00, Bonzi, Detlef and Augmon all scoring on Kobe in the post on 3 straight trips. They had a lot of named 2 and 3 types, but no real superstar. Pip was old. Sheed was a killer, but thankfully he was mental or otherwise you might've actually pulled it off. Damon Stoud and Sabonis weren't turrible either at 1/5, but you know what happened. They played like a mess and most of those Fs weren't appreciably better than the next. I remember the 95/6 Blazers seeming to be deep w/ big Fs and the Lakers would often lose big up there. We had a 46 pt loss in 95, the final year of that 10,000 fan shoebox arena you had. We got outrebounded like a mofo by old Buck and all the big, tough Fs. Blazers have a historical affinity for forwards. The thing that differentiates the Lakers from the Blazers or another deep team is Brawn and AD, primarily. Same thing as in 2000. When it came down to it, Shaq and Kobe were worth more than all Porty's depth at 2/3. We seem to plug in pieces that play well as a group instead of as individuals in the playoffs.

1) Yes, I was around and I remember.

2) Blazers do indeeed have a superstar this go around.

3) The thread is are the Lakers the deepest (no). They are however the favorites.

For a team who has the most titles in the NBA history, win last year, and are the over whelming favorites to win again this year, there is a small sect of Laker fans who are so insecure, they can’t handle another team getting any recognition.

[LakersSoul]

To me the Lakers will be worse. No Rondo, no Dwight. The replacements aren't as impactful.

The new Lakers are 2nd options on 7th and 8th seeds? I find that to be a huge stretch. Deeper maybe for the regular season, just plain worse for the playoffs.

If they sign Marc Gasol this obviously changes everything.

Schröder or Rondo?
Trez or Dwight?
Wes or DGreen?

You are right, we are getting younger and more athletic.

I'd prefer Rondo, Dwight, and Wes Matthews.

Montrez was -70 vs. the Nuggets, Howard +42. Zubac was +32.
LMAO

Schröder's advance stats are very average in the RS and playoffs. Rondo's are average in the RS too, but they are well above average in the playoffs. Hence "playoff Rondo".

Stats show the Lakers got weaker for the playoffs.

I see... That’s why DH couldn’t get $3 million yet Lakers haters were outraged the Lakers got Harrell for only 2/19. Yes, Harrell struggled against Joker. Harrell is not big enough to guard Joker. The guy is 6’7!!! Dumb Doc/Clippers were using him to guard a 7 footer.

As for DH, you must not watch the Lakers because he played well against Joker but had to warm the bench in most other games.

[Patsfan1081]

Discuss. They got two guys who could be second option scorers on most 7th or 8th seeds and Wes Mathews and could still get KCP and Marc Gasol and maybe keep avery bradley, possibly someone else, and they got Javale. If they get Gasol and keep KCP, is this the deepest team in the league?

? Who would be second options on a playoff team, Schroeder? That seems like a bit of a stretch.

[Pelly24]

Discuss. They got two guys who could be second option scorers on most 7th or 8th seeds and Wes Mathews and could still get KCP and Marc Gasol and maybe keep avery bradley, possibly someone else, and they got Javale. If they get Gasol and keep KCP, is this the deepest team in the league?

? Who would be second options on a playoff team, Schroeder? That seems like a bit of a stretch.

On the nets last year, when Kyrie was injured, Schroeder would've been the second best player or definitely the best or second best scorer. Fringe playoff/7th or 8th seed teams in the east would probably be in good shape to have Schroeder be their second best player/scorer.

[Michael Lucky]

Interesting to see what the closing lineup for the Lakers would be. Either way they are likely to go small. I'm guessing Shroeder, KCP, Caruso, Lebron, and AD.

This would leave Kuzma and Harrell on the bench. Still hoping we keep Markieff for more shooting help.

[Magic Is Magic]

Yes easily, typical Lebron and his bought teams. If he stayed long enough to win the organic way he would get a lot more respect from the league fan base.

Great response gif move!

[chrisab123]

Has to be Denver.

[Liam_Gallagher]

Interesting to see what the closing lineup for the Lakers would be. Either way they are likely to go small. I'm guessing Shroeder, KCP, Caruso, Lebron, and AD.

This would leave Kuzma and Harrell on the bench. Still hoping we keep Markieff for more shooting help.

That’s the death lineup they should go with. Harrell will be solid for 28-30 mins a night but shouldn’t close.

[zimpy27]

Clips are still quite deep