The Los Angeles Lakers are entering a new era in the 2022-23 NBA season, looking like a solid squad in LeBron James’ first game back from an ankle injury. The King has shown his desire to take this team to the promised land once again, but the competition will be hard for them.
Still, the Lakers looked solid during their most recent game, beating the New Orleans Pelicans, with fans showing their excitement about what’s coming for this team. They added interesting pieces ahead of the 2023 trade deadline, including D’Angelo Russell, Mo Bamba, Malik Beasley, and Jarred Vanderbilt.
The Purple and Gold seem to be in a very good position right now, and as the days go by, many people think they made the right decisions ahead of the second part of the season. This could work well for them down the stretch, as the Lakers are still pushing to at least get into the play-in tournament.
Stephen A. Smith Says Lakers Can Possibly Win The Championship This Season
For many, this team could go all the way and make a deep playoff, run even make it to the Finals. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith wasn’t sold on the Lakers at the start of the season, but now he’s changed his mind about the team. The veteran analyst recently claimed it was ‘possible’ for the Lakers to fight for a championship this campaign.
.@stephenasmith says there's a possibility the Lakers could be title contenders 👀 pic.twitter.com/q7lAw6nygh
— First Take (@FirstTake) February 16, 2023
“I like D’Angelo Russell on the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 17 points, 45% shooting. I like Malik Beasley on the Los Angeles Lakers. I like this kid [Jarred] Vanderbilt on the Los Angeles Lakers. They’ve improved their shooting. They’ve been able to spread the floor. They’ve improved their defensive prowess. If these guys are healthy, the way the West has looked, I can’t summarily dismiss the possibility that the Los Angeles Lakers could make some noise and, dare I say, potentially advance to a conference finals.
Stephen A. gave some numbers about the Lakers’ chances to win the first two playoff series, even saying that they could make it to the Western Conference Finals.
“… The Lakers, healthy, are going to the (Western Conference) semifinals — automatic, they will win the first round, they’re going to the semifinals, and I’ll give them a 30% chance (of reaching the Conference Finals).”
This would be huge for the Purple and Gold, who have gone through a lot in the past two seasons. Magic Johnson claims nobody will want to face the Lakers in the postseason, and Kenny Smith says that they have a talented team similar to the one that won the ‘chip in 2020.
It seems like the Lakers are getting a lot of attention now, but they need to show that they can compete at the highest level.
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