Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James firmly believes that the team cannot afford to “waste a day” as they gear up for what will be a challenging 2022-23 season.
The veteran, entering his 20th season, identified continuity as a major wrinkle the side needs to iron out and is aware of the fact that the Lakers are well behind when it comes to a stacked Western Conference and don’t necessarily start off as favorites.
Following the final preseason game against the Sacramento Kings, which the Lakers lost, James shared his thoughts on the bigger challenge the outfit faces and how it was essential to get better by the day.
"I like the way our team is constructed, but we have to continue to work." – LeBron James shares his takeaways from the preseason. pic.twitter.com/CqstUeN6Xy
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) October 15, 2022
Speaking to Spectrum SportsNet, the 37-year-old said:
“I like the way our team is constructed, but we have to continue to work because a lot of the Western Conference teams, a lot of the NBA teams right now, have been together for a couple of years, a few years, and we haven’t. So we can’t have an opportunity to not get better on a day-to-day basis. We have to always understand how important each day is.
“You look at the top teams in the West, you got the Clippers, and you got Phoenix, you got Denver, and that’s just to name a few of the teams that are gonna come out and be ready to go right from the jump because of the chemistry they’ve had for quite a while now. We’re one of the teams that have to continue to learn on the fly and not waste a day.”
Los Angeles had only one win in their six preseason games — hardly anything to move the needle compared to losing all six of their practice games last season.
Los Angeles Lakers Roster Holds Promise, But Is It Enough?
There’s no denying the fact that the Lakers are better placed with their roster this year when compared to the veteran list they played with last season.
The likes of Dwight Howard, DeAndre Jordan, Trevor Ariza, and Wayne Ellington made way for younger and promising names in Juan Toscano-Anderson, Lonnie Walker IV, Max Christie, and Patrick Beverley.
That said, the bigger challenge, as James outlined, will be understanding how the young blood plays and getting them to be equipped against offense-heavy teams like the Warriors and the Suns.
There were glimpses of what the bench could do, but Los Angeles has its work cut out for them, and as James puts it, they don’t have time to waste.
James and Davis are still the Laker’s best bet to take them to striking distance of the playoffs, or even perhaps the title, but the challenge will be how they fare in the minutes one or both of these players sit out. All this just makes their Opening Night challenge against Golden State that much more crucial.
