The Los Angeles Lakers have been dealt a massive blow with the news of LeBron James being out with a foot injury for possibly several weeks.
The Lakers are 29-32, still 3 games below .500, and currently occupying the 12th seed in the West. With LeBron hurt, the best solution for the Lakers could be adding reinforcements from the buyout market.
Rob Pelinka has done a terrific job when it comes to constructing this Lakers’ roster, making the perfect Russell Westbrook trade to bring 3 quality rotational players into the squad. Since trading for Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, and D’Angelo Russell, the Lakers are 4-1 and looking primed for a climb up the table. They also added Mo Bamba by trading Patrick Beverley.
John Wall was let go by the Houston Rockets for the second time in 8 months after they waived him as a part of the trade that sent Luke Kennard to the Grizzlies, Eric Gordon to the Clippers, and Danny Green and Wall to the Rockets. He’s arguably the best guard option on the market right now.
Serge Ibaka was waived by the Milwaukee Bucks after a tough season where he couldn’t break into the rotation consistently enough. Giannis Antetokounmpo even jokingly admonished him as a role player. However, both Wall and Ibaka could provide some value to the Lakers in limited roles.
To acquire the veteran pair, the Lakers will likely have to waive Davon Reed, who they acquired in the Thomas Bryant trade, and Wenyen Gabriel, someone who’s fallen out of the rotation in recent weeks.
John Wall And Serge Ibaka Would Be The Perfect Fit With The Lakers
With LeBron James sidelined for weeks, the Lakers will be sweating bullets. The new-look Lakers haven’t lost a game with LeBron, going 3-0 in their games together. However, the Lakers have to battle for the playoffs without their star player and need to spread responsibility across the roster.
James actually had a rough stretch in the new lineup, averaging just 20.0 points on 38.6% shooting in his last 3 games. We did see bright spots like his 11-point outburst on an injured foot against the Dallas Mavericks, but the Lakers need players to take the mantle from James. With his injury, their best route to success will be spreading the love across their deep lineup.
Dennis Schroder is their only healthy point guard on the roster right now, as D’Angelo Russell is also nursing an injury. Bringing in John Wall to be the primary playmaker and putting him in a fast-break offensive system where he’ll excel may be the best fit for both the player and the team. The Lakers are leading the league in pace, and Wall would fit nicely within that system, similar to the qualities Russell Westbrook brought. He won’t need to score like the Lakers expected Westbrook to, so it may be a more seamless fit as a starter or off the bench.
Serge Ibaka beefs up the Lakers’ frontcourt as an option that could be a veteran that is given minutes over Mo Bamba in such a crucial stretch of games. Ibaka is a championship-winning player and provides stretchability, which would make him a very complementary fit next to Davis. Getting Ibaka also allows Davis to run as the power forward in lineups, reducing the wear-and-tear AD is facing as the starting center for the Lakers.
Wall averaged 11.4 points and 5.2 assists on just 22.2 minutes per game, showing valid production for a rotational point guard. He wasn’t the right fit to be the primary point guard on the LA Clippers with their title ambitions, but he could definitely fit in as a ball-handling option for the Lakers in their current state.
Ibaka played just 16 games on limited minutes this season, averaging 4.1 points and 2.8 rebounds. He won’t be a needle mover but may be a crucial size addition for the Lakers’ bench, as he brings veteran instincts and leadership qualities.
How Does This Impact The Current Players On The Roster?
Wall and Ibaka will not be featured members of the Lakers’ game plan but could be crucial in making teams struggle to stop them due to the team’s versatility. Dennis Schroder has excelled as a sixth man his entire career and could retain that role as Wall starts games as the primary table-setter in LeBron’s absence.
Playing Wall in lineups with Malik Beasley would also further unlock his playmaking and make it more likely that he successfully collapses defenses to create open shooting opportunities. Ibaka would be a complementary fit in any frontcourt lineup, whether it is to provide rim protection and spacing in lineups with Jarred Vanderbilt or Rui Hachimura or to be the anchor man next to Anthony Davis to allow the star to impact the game more offensively. Ibaka’s theoretical rim protection and defensive ability may be something the Lakers could employ but don’t necessarily have to rely on for success.
Lineups with Wall and Davis could be extremely valuable as Wall would be an elite pick-and-roll orchestrator with a player of AD’s caliber. We’ve seen Wall achieve great things with lesser-talented teammates in that role, so zeroing in on these abilities could help boost his stock for next season while also providing the Lakers with what they require in the short term.
D’Angelo Russell has excelled in his career as both an off-ball scorer as well as an on-ball creator. This versatility allows him to be in lineups with Wall and allows Darvin Ham to make personnel or rotational decisions based on form in a particular game.
Despite not having any wing players that can directly absorb the minutes opened up by LeBron’s injury, the Lakers have plenty of versatile frontcourt players and guards to fill in that role. Beasley, Hachimura, Vanderbilt, Lonnie Walker IV, and Troy Brown Jr. could all fill those positions or other positions across the frontcourt. Austin Reaves can focus on being the backup shooting guard for the Lakers regardless of who plays ahead of him. For added shooting, the Lakers still have the talents of Max Christie on their bench, but it may be harder for him to find minutes in such a crucial time for the Lakers.
Wall adds tremendous flexibility to the Lakers’ backcourt and genuine playmaking ability. The Lakers are 13th in assists this season, averaging 25.2 made assists every game. Wall could boost that number significantly, even in limited minutes, purely through shot creation, something the Lakers lack without LeBron James. Hopefully, his ability to create open 3s is also maximized, as the Lakers are 29th in the league in 3-pointers made. Wall may not be able to knock them down, shooting 30.3% from 3 this season, but he still creates opportunities from 3 for his teammates at a consistent rate.
Ideal Lakers Starting Lineup?
Provided the Lakers make the decision to cut Reed and Gabriel for Wall and Ibaka, their ideal depth chart should look like this with LeBron not available.
Point Guards: John Wall, Dennis Schroder
Shooting Guards: D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Max Christie
Small Forwards: Malik Beasley, Lonnie Walker IV, Troy Brown Jr.
Power Forwards: Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura, Cole Swider
Centers: Anthony Davis, Serge Ibaka, Mo Bamba
Many of these players can play multiple positions. Russell can play from either guard spot, Beasley and Walker can play either as shooting guards or small forwards, while Hachimura can play either small or power forward. Vanderbilt has shown the ability to play all 3 positions from small forward, power forward, and center, while Davis can play either center or power forward.
The team the Lakers should start with features John Wall, D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Anthony Davis. To limit AD’s minutes at center, the Lakers could play Serge Ibaka or Mo Bamba at center while moving AD to the PF and playing either Vanderbilt or Beasley, given what the team needs. If they need to start locking players up, Vanderbilt would be the ideal point-of-attack defender to guard the opponent’s best player, as he did against Luka Doncic recently. Beasley would be more valuable if the Lakers are looking to score.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiD3lM1qkr4
Positions are no longer as defined as they once used to be, and the Lakers have an assortment of players that can provide different things on the court. They have the personnel to play a shooting-heavy lineup that is still big in size due to the shooting touch of Ibaka and Bamba in lineups next to Anthony Davis. Any lineup with Davis and Vanderbilt would ensure an elite interior defense with a highly competent perimeter defender. With Ibaka, interior defense is still maintained, though not at the same level as what AD provides. Wall can fit the Lakers’ fast pace and put pressure on the rim off the dribble, something the team has sorely missed since Russ’s departure.
How Will They Perform Without LeBron James?
If LeBron doesn’t need surgery and is out for 6 weeks, that means James will return sometime in the second week of April, which would effectively rule him out of the remainder of the regular season. Given the ambiguity around the seriousness of the injury, some fans are hoping for something as little as a 2-week layoff for James.
The earliest James could return if the injury is he is out for just a few weeks could be against the Houston Rockets on March 16th. The Lakers have 8 games in that span, starting with the Memphis Grizzlies tomorrow. Their other opponents will be Oklahoma City, Minnesota, Golden State, Memphis (again), Toronto, New York, and New Orleans.
These are winnable games even with LeBron out, and the Lakers can’t afford to drop more than 2 games in this 8-game stretch. Strong results using their new lineup could even lead to LeBron having the luxury of taking ample time to ensure he’s healthy in time for the playoffs.
A top-10 seed is likely, given the talent of this roster on paper and the multiple ways they can attack teams. As basketball fans, we’ve seen many things look good on paper and fail in action. Hopefully, the Lakers can execute and secure a spot in the play-in tournament, at least in LeBron’s absence.
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