Two prominent NBA reporters on where the Lakers rank in the Western Conference

Posted by Admin September 8, 2024 NBA

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There are all sorts of pessimistic predictions being made for this upcoming season’s Los Angeles Lakers across the land. Many have them as merely a play-in tournament team, and in fact, ESPN picked them to finish 11th in the Western Conference and miss the play-in tourney altogether.

The reality is that their roster looks like a legitimate playoff roster. Of course, if LeBron James and.or Anthony Davis miss significant time with an injury, that would change, but that is true for any team and its one or two best players.

During a recent episode of “The Hoop Collective,” Brian Windhorst and Tim McMahon discussed where Los Angeles ranks in the West. McMahon said he doesn’t see any improvement for the team this coming season (h/t The Sports Rush).

“What I have them ranked at is basically the seventh-best team in the Western Conference which is what they were last year,” said McMahon.

The Lakers, of course, have made basically no offseason moves this summer. They’re counting on internal improvement, as well as some strong play from rookie Dalton Knecht, in order to move up the ladder.

Last season, they had the eighth-best record in the Western Conference, and by winning the first game of the play-in tournament, they claimed the seventh seed in the West. As Windhorst pointed out, fans will say the team suffered because of injuries to Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt, two of their best defenders, not to mention poor coaching and lineup decisions by then-head coach Darvin Ham.

“The Lakers fans would not say that they were healthy last year,” said Windhorst. “Their two stars were healthy but their role players weren’t…I agree [role players being healthy is equally or more important], you’re projecting that if you were healthy last year you may not be healthy this year but you can say the opposite as well.”

No one can accurately predict if James and/or Davis will stay healthy this season, nor can anyone reasonably expect that it is a lock they will get injured.

On the other hand, if new head coach JJ Redick proves to be a good one, that internal improvement just may happen. Windhorst feels starting off-guard Austin Reaves is a prime candidate for that type of improvement.

“I just know that JJ really believes in Austin Reaves and I think he’s going to try to put him in position to be successful,” said Windhorst. “Whether that actually happens or not…I just know JJ has big plans for Austin Reaves.”

One way or another, this will likely not be a dull or boring season for the Purple and Gold, even if they greatly underperform.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Two prominent NBA reporters on where the Lakers rank in the West