The LeBron Thread 2021 Off-Season Edition

[Statlanta]

What’s the point of more shooting if shooting gets nailed to the bench(Ben McLemore) in favor of defense. I’d rather focus on roster consolidation than a big name.

[MisterHibachi]

Lakers interested in Myles Turner. Not exactly the kind of shooter the Lakers need, but a stretch 5 would be nice. Defense would also be ridiculous with AD and him averaging 5-6 blocks per game

He would be a good get and he's a great rim protector, but I'm just not sure about investing any serious money/assets into the 5 position when AD is still the best 5 on the team. Would rather spend those assets for another ball handler or 3 and D guy.

[LikeABosh]

What’s the point of more shooting if shooting gets nailed to the bench(Ben McLemore) in favor of defense. I’d rather focus on roster consolidation than a big name.

McLemore is missing a lot more than just defense. Vogel isn't going to bench someone like Hield or McCollum if Pelinka trades for them

[LikeABosh]

Lakers interested in Myles Turner. Not exactly the kind of shooter the Lakers need, but a stretch 5 would be nice. Defense would also be ridiculous with AD and him averaging 5-6 blocks per game

He would be a good get and he's a great rim protector, but I'm just not sure about investing any serious money/assets into the 5 position when AD is still the best 5 on the team. Would rather spend those assets for another ball handler or 3 and D guy.

Makes sense about using assets to find a 3+D guy instead, but AD at 5 is really about versatility and spacing. I don't think Turner playing there and AD playing at the 4 makes much of a difference. Turner isn't clogging the lane and he's not gonna be a defensive liability when it comes to switching. But I suppose another ballhandler is still more important

[Bidofo]

So the next season is apparently going back to the regular NBA timeline, meaning this off-season will just barely be longer than the last one. If they were gonna lose anyway, better for the Lakers to lose earlier and let LeBron and AD heal up. Just another thing to look at on the bright side lol. Wouldn’t surprise me if James came back and looked like his pre-injury self in the first game of the season.

[nzahir]

So the next season is apparently going back to the regular NBA timeline, meaning this off-season will just barely be longer than the last one. If they were gonna lose anyway, better for the Lakers to lose earlier and let LeBron and AD heal up. Just another thing to look at on the bright side lol. Wouldn’t surprise me if James came back and looked like his pre-injury self in the first game of the season.

Here is another bright side

Clips or Utah would have likely embarrassed us with all these 3s

We are legit playing a different sport

[nzahir]

Lakers interested in Myles Turner. Not exactly the kind of shooter the Lakers need, but a stretch 5 would be nice. Defense would also be ridiculous with AD and him averaging 5-6 blocks per game

He would be a good get and he's a great rim protector, but I'm just not sure about investing any serious money/assets into the 5 position when AD is still the best 5 on the team. Would rather spend those assets for another ball handler or 3 and D guy.

Makes sense about using assets to find a 3+D guy instead, but AD at 5 is really about versatility and spacing. I don't think Turner playing there and AD playing at the 4 makes much of a difference. Turner isn't clogging the lane and he's not gonna be a defensive liability when it comes to switching. But I suppose another ballhandler is still more important

Ofc it is

AD needs to close at the 5 for us to be a serious threat

Need a guard who can shoot the 3 and create a bit at least
Need an upgrade from Kuzma at the 3/4 who can also hit the 3
Need a replacement big for Drummond and likely Trez

[LikeABosh]

He would be a good get and he's a great rim protector, but I'm just not sure about investing any serious money/assets into the 5 position when AD is still the best 5 on the team. Would rather spend those assets for another ball handler or 3 and D guy.

Makes sense about using assets to find a 3+D guy instead, but AD at 5 is really about versatility and spacing. I don't think Turner playing there and AD playing at the 4 makes much of a difference. Turner isn't clogging the lane and he's not gonna be a defensive liability when it comes to switching. But I suppose another ballhandler is still more important

Ofc it is

AD needs to close at the 5 for us to be a serious threat

Need a guard who can shoot the 3 and create a bit at least
Need an upgrade from Kuzma at the 3/4 who can also hit the 3
Need a replacement big for Drummond and likely Trez

No, I just explained why a LeBron/AD/Turner front court doesn't hurt "small ball". Unless you think Markieff Morris has a bigger defensive impact than Myles Turner. Switchability is better, but I think overall the defense is better and the offense isn't clogged with someone like Drummond

Also I don't know why we're so concerned with the last 4 minutes of close games. There are other things to worry about. AD ain't gonna be playing center for heavy minutes. He doesn't want to

[nzahir]

Makes sense about using assets to find a 3+D guy instead, but AD at 5 is really about versatility and spacing. I don't think Turner playing there and AD playing at the 4 makes much of a difference. Turner isn't clogging the lane and he's not gonna be a defensive liability when it comes to switching. But I suppose another ballhandler is still more important

Ofc it is

AD needs to close at the 5 for us to be a serious threat

Need a guard who can shoot the 3 and create a bit at least
Need an upgrade from Kuzma at the 3/4 who can also hit the 3
Need a replacement big for Drummond and likely Trez

No, I just explained why a LeBron/AD/Turner front court doesn't hurt "small ball". Unless you think Markieff Morris has a bigger defensive impact than Myles Turner. Switchability is better, but I think overall the defense is better and the offense isn't clogged with someone like Drummond

It doesn't hurt small ball, but using all the resources for a 5 is less beneficial than getting a big upgrade at a guard spot or a versatile 3/4 who can shoot

The offense needs a guy who can hit tough shots and hopefully create for himself

If Utah wants to avoid tax (they shouldn't, they have a real team and should even try to add on), I would love Bojan

Rozier would be awesome if we could somehow snag him. Maybe in a deal for Trez (opt in), Kuzma, and our 1st for Rozier and fillers. Maybe Bridges is in there or a 2nd and some a guy like Martin? Or in a deal with a 3rd team that sends a C to CHA, we get Rozier and 3rd team gets Kuzma, our 1st, and 2nds and maybe more assets from CHA depending on the C

[LikeABosh]

Ofc it is

AD needs to close at the 5 for us to be a serious threat

Need a guard who can shoot the 3 and create a bit at least
Need an upgrade from Kuzma at the 3/4 who can also hit the 3
Need a replacement big for Drummond and likely Trez

No, I just explained why a LeBron/AD/Turner front court doesn't hurt "small ball". Unless you think Markieff Morris has a bigger defensive impact than Myles Turner. Switchability is better, but I think overall the defense is better and the offense isn't clogged with someone like Drummond

It doesn't hurt small ball, but using all the resources for a 5 is less beneficial than getting a big upgrade at a guard spot or a versatile 3/4 who can shoot

The offense needs a guy who can hit tough shots and hopefully create for himself

If Utah wants to avoid tax (they shouldn't, they have a real team and should even try to add on), I would love Bojan

Rozier would be awesome if we could somehow snag him. Maybe in a deal for Trez (opt in), Kuzma, and our 1st for Rozier and fillers. Maybe Bridges is in there or a 2nd and some a guy like Martin? Or in a deal with a 3rd team that sends a C to CHA, we get Rozier and 3rd team gets Kuzma, our 1st, and 2nds and maybe more assets from CHA depending on the C

Right, I gotcha. It depends on what Turner costs. I just didn't want to outright to dismiss him because of AD closing at the 5

I was thinking of Rozier earlier. He had a great season and as funny as it sounds, a "chucker" is something the Lakers actually need

[donnieme]

Ofc it is

AD needs to close at the 5 for us to be a serious threat

Need a guard who can shoot the 3 and create a bit at least
Need an upgrade from Kuzma at the 3/4 who can also hit the 3
Need a replacement big for Drummond and likely Trez

No, I just explained why a LeBron/AD/Turner front court doesn't hurt "small ball". Unless you think Markieff Morris has a bigger defensive impact than Myles Turner. Switchability is better, but I think overall the defense is better and the offense isn't clogged with someone like Drummond

It doesn't hurt small ball, but using all the resources for a 5 is less beneficial than getting a big upgrade at a guard spot or a versatile 3/4 who can shoot

The offense needs a guy who can hit tough shots and hopefully create for himself

If Utah wants to avoid tax (they shouldn't, they have a real team and should even try to add on), I would love Bojan

Rozier would be awesome if we could somehow snag him. Maybe in a deal for Trez (opt in), Kuzma, and our 1st for Rozier and fillers. Maybe Bridges is in there or a 2nd and some a guy like Martin? Or in a deal with a 3rd team that sends a C to CHA, we get Rozier and 3rd team gets Kuzma, our 1st, and 2nds and maybe more assets from CHA depending on the C

Good point. The 5 situation is a really tricky one because it doesn't exactly make for an attractive job posting to be good enough to start on a contender but ready to be benched on key possessions.

Not to beat a dead horse but management really struck gold the first time with Dwight.

[falcolombardi]

i would honestly look into Mcgee + gasol to play center in regular season or backup then try to go for perimeter players

the inside will be fine as long as davis is there, no need to have that many big bodies

davis + lebron to play 4 and 5 in playoffs, use a wing player as backup 4 and marc/Cheap center as backup 5

[D.Brasco]

I hope LeBron is using that whole one million budget to repair his body this off-season. An earlier than expected playoff exit and a longer off-season may be what he needs right now at this stage of his career.

[Greyhound]

i would honestly look into Mcgee + gasol to play center in regular season or backup then try to go for perimeter players

the inside will be fine as long as davis is there, no need to have that many big bodies

davis + lebron to play 4 and 5 in playoffs, use a wing player as backup 4 and marc/Cheap center as backup 5

I would agree with this if Davis were a more reliable player.

As it currently stands, it would not be the worst thing in the world to have another payer capable of supplementing some AD things (In the event he goes down again).

Size, outside shooting, rim protection, vertical spacing (lob threat) being the things Turner can replicate.

I personally like the idea of Turner.

[donnieme]

Think should build with key roleplayers with lower likelihood to shrink or struggle against the most basic playoff matchups . There was always the lingering doubt Lakers had that false depth the 2020 Clippers had, you know the one where the team is stacked with talents that don't move the needle in the playoffs. Can't say some of these guys did much to dispel that.

[frozt]

Probably not possible but I’d try for brogdon. Indy have a bunch of good players on a crappy team.

This is my ideal target as well, I feel like Brogdon is being so underrated lately, not sure what it would take with Indiana to get it done.

[donnieme]

With Kyrie and Harden possibly out for the series it's unfortunate to have AD's injury proneness snatch a golden opportunity.

Lakers should probably build around the expectation that AD will miss stretches in the playoffs. Thought that was the idea behind having guys like Harrell, Schroder and Kuzma but they never really made the Lakers more self sufficient.

[Slava]

With Kyrie and Harden possibly out for the series it's unfortunate to have AD's injury proneness snatch a golden opportunity.

Lakers should probably build around the expectation that AD will miss stretches in the playoffs. Thought that was the idea behind having guys like Harrell, Schroder and Kuzma but they never really made the Lakers more self sufficient.

That's a strange way of looking at it, AD had a reason to be injured with short turnaround times and a condensed season. Kyrie has been on vacation for the best part of a year prior to this season and took plenty of mid season breaks to keep himself fit. Harden had an earlier exit as well and spent most of the offseason in Vegas coming up with ways to make Houston miserable.

If I'm the Nets, I'd think its the other way around and I'm missing a golden opportunity while AD is injured because whoever comes out of the East should comfortably beat whoever comes out of the West.

[Big Aristotle]

I agree with the earlier sentiment of obtaining a guard that has inexorable confidence. Dennis ostensibly has that mentality, but somebody who doesn't look like they're wearing an invisible Dora the Explorer backpack every time they shoot a three pointer would be preferred. Trade scenarios can be amorphous at times, but there are some free agents who I think can work within the construct of how I'm guessing this team envisions its ideal self (bigs who defend, wings who can shoot ... err reasonably shoot). I'll admit I'm leaning heavy into outside shooting in light of this postseason, LeBron's age, and a mild belief in the coaching to mask many of the defensive concerns they'd bring. There's a reason these guys may be attainable: they bear some flaws. But I feel there's a special team in here ... somewhere.

Guards: Retain Caruso and THT. I'm amenable to McLemore returning too. I have some strange belief that he's going to shoot 43% from three next season. Patty Mills is pretty much at the top of the feasible wish list. Reggie Jackson and Wayne Ellington are good options too. I think Ellington's ability to run off of screens, set his feet, and release the ball quick could provide some reliable offensive sets on the LeBron led second units (LeBron/Korver 2018 Cleveland comes to mind). Some deeper cuts: Sterling Brown or Jaylen Nowell, if the Timberwolves don't guarantee the latter's contract. Danny Green or Reggie Bullock seem unrealistic.

Forwards: Retain Wes. Wouldn't mind Kieff, either. Twin energy is a real thing and Kieff is bound to have some of Marcus' three point shooting rub off on him. Rudy Gay feels like the ideal veteran addition. Maybe JaMychal Green if he exercises his player option. Both of these are likely pipe dreams amidst other opposing teams with cap space. A deep cut: Tony Snell. He has good size (6 '6") and feels like the player who Vogel could get something out of defensively. Reduce his offensive role to spot up shooting and have nearly all of his shots come from beyond the arc. He's fairly adept at getting into his shooting motion quickly. Might even kick the tires on Carmelo ... I know, I know.

Centers: Bring Gasol back into the starting lineup. Let Drummond go and live with Trez's player option decision. Kelly Olynyk really intrigues me. If they opt for more athleticism at the position: Khem Birch please. He's undersized but I like his game a little bit. Has shown some trajectory in improving his outside shot. Maybe Gorgui Dieng, Javale, or Bobby Portis?? This is a position where you can get adequate value on a minimum contract.

[donnieme]

With Kyrie and Harden possibly out for the series it's unfortunate to have AD's injury proneness snatch a golden opportunity.

Lakers should probably build around the expectation that AD will miss stretches in the playoffs. Thought that was the idea behind having guys like Harrell, Schroder and Kuzma but they never really made the Lakers more self sufficient.

That's a strange way of looking at it, AD had a reason to be injured with short turnaround times and a condensed season. Kyrie has been on vacation for the best part of a year prior to this season and took plenty of mid season breaks to keep himself fit. Harden had an earlier exit as well and spent most of the offseason in Vegas coming up with ways to make Houston miserable.

If I'm the Nets, I'd think its the other way around and I'm missing a golden opportunity while AD is injured because whoever comes out of the East should comfortably beat whoever comes out of the West.

Nets are in the same boat except theirs will be a cruise liner, they must have started planning their parade route after last week.