The Los Angeles Lakers were the biggest disappointment of the 2021-22 NBA season, as they failed to even make it to the play-in tournament. The Lakers won just 33 games as injuries to LeBron James and Anthony Davis, combined with a poor supporting cast, derailed their campaign as they hit rock bottom.
The only way to go from there is upward, and they have made some changes, but not everyone is convinced they’ll be much better next season. Tim Bontemps was asked if the Lakers would win over 44 games in 2022-23, and he was pessimistic about their chances of doing that. He even said the best-case scenario with a healthy AD and LeBron would be 45-48 wins and added that the difference between the 2020 Lakers, who were so dominant, and this iteration of the team, is the weak supporting cast.
(starts at 1:14 mark):
“There is a significant difference, though. That team had an actual supporting cast around them, this team does not. For as good as those two guys are, the bottom 80% of the roster is near the bottom of the league, frankly, in terms of talent. So, when you look at how deep the Western Conference is at the top and you look at the amount of holes that the Lakers have. Yes, if both of those guys are healthy all season and I would say play over 70 games, both of them, I think they can win 45-48 games. But that’s the absolute high-end outcome and I think more likely you are gonna be below.”
While saying it is near the bottom of the league is a bold statement, it definitely isn’t a good supporting cast by any means. Russell Westbrook just doesn’t fit with these two, and while they have made some decent acquisitions this offseason, no one from the rest of the roster really stands out as a potential difference maker.
That is exactly why the Lakers seem to have finally decided to give up both their draft picks to trade for Kyrie Irving, as they desperately need some firepower. They need to maximize their chances of winning a title for as long as LeBron is still near his best, and a move like this one has to be made as the current version of this team is going nowhere.
