The Phoenix Suns have gotten the player movement ball rolling this summer after making a blockbuster trade for Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards.
With another top player heading to the West, Skip Bayless believes LeBron James and the Lakers’ chances at contention have disappeared with the Suns, Nuggets, and even Clippers ahead of them.
“Now a 5th championship for LeBron James is looking dimmer and dimmer. Now he’s looking up at Denver, at KD/Book/Beal, even at Kawhi who will be much better after getting his knee cleaned out.”
Now a 5th championship for LeBron James is looking dimmer and dimmer. Now he's looking up at Denver, at KD/Book/Beal, even at Kawhi who will be much better after getting his knee cleaned out.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) June 18, 2023
The offseason has just started, so we do not know what the Lakers will do to improve their roster. Even if Kyrie Irving looks like a distant possibility now, the Lakers have the 17th pick in the 2023 Draft along with contracts like Malik Beasley to make some changes around the edges.
Is LeBron James Out Of The Title Picture?
LeBron James showed this season that he may still be a top-10 player in the NBA, but he can’t singlehandedly carry teams anymore. He averaged 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 6.8 assists this season and 24.5 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists in the playoffs, putting up strong numbers in an unlikely run to the Western Conference Finals. The best thing the Lakers can do is bring back their team from February onwards back and get an offseason worth of continuity amongst the players.
If the Lakers could find a way to upgrade from D’Angelo Russell to a Fred VanVleet, that could be a more useful move than going big-game hunting as they finally had success this season after adding depth instead of stars. Retaining free agents Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves and swapping D’Lo for FVV or even Chris Paul could be enough to keep them in the conversation, though not make them the favorites.
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