As one of the NBA’s premier legacy teams, the Los Angeles Lakers are a constant topic of conversation heading into any season. This year is no different. With a refocused Luka Doncic and a still lethal LeBron James flanked by a solid cast of players led by Austin Reaves, former top pick Deandre Ayton and former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, many have pegged the Purple and Gold to contend for the title.
One popular media personality who’s convinced of the Lakers’ legitimacy as title contenders is ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins. In fact, the former NBA champion and now media personality pegged the Lakers as the third-best team in the league.
However, his co-host on the “Road Trippin'” podcast, Richard Jefferson, doesn’t share the same enthusiasm Perk has for the team from Tinseltown, contending he has them as the fifth- or sixth-best team.
Second-round participants
Any team with Luka on its lineup will always be considered a shoo-in to make the postseason. However, a team that has both Luka and LeBron? That’s just taking things to another level. Jefferson, a former NBA champion, though, believes it takes more than just star power to make noise in the playoffs.
“I think they’re like the fifth- or sixth-best team,” Jefferson surmised. “They typically lose in the second round, right?”
“If you’re the third-best team in the league, I don’t see the Lakers going out in the second round, which I believe is probably the max that their team can do, unless they get really lucky,” he explained. “If they get Oklahoma City, if they get Houston, even if they get Denver in the first or second round, they’re going to lose. That’s what I’m saying. The Lakers are a lot further away than what I think we really want to try and give them credit for.”
While the Lakers’ front office deserves plenty of credit for assembling a roster that can complement Luka’s and LeBron’s skill sets, the bulk of the heavy lifting will remain on the shoulders of the team’s megastars. And while the duo has proven capable of putting up tremendous numbers on offense, it’s their lackluster work on the defensive side that hastened their downfall in the first round last season — a notion that several analysts agree with.
Perk is high on the Lakers
According to Perkins, the Lakers and their passionate fan base have many things to rejoice about. Not only is Luka looking great, thanks to his commitment to developing a better physique, but the Lakers have acquired high-quality players capable of tilting the tables in their favor.
“Luka is in shape, showed his commitment to it, and I believe LeBron James is happy with the moves that Rob Pelinka and the Lakers made this offseason,” Perk stated. “Going and getting Marcus Smart — I understand he played meaningless basketball last year with the Wizards, but he’s still in his prime. A guy who is, two or three years ago, removed from winning Defensive Player of the Year. That’s something you need at the wing position.”
In addition, the Lakers also acquired Ayton, a former first pick of the 2018 draft. While the 7-footer is far from the caliber of legendary bigs the Lakers have had through the decades — Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain — he still has plenty of potential to develop into a dominant force in the paint.
“If you could get the Ayton we saw during that Phoenix Suns run, when he was bought in, playing with the right type of tenacity and mindset, which I believe he will, then you’re in great shape,” Kendrick asserted.
To be fair, Perk is high on the Lakers but still doesn’t think they’ll win it all this season. However, with the manpower they have now, the Purple and Gold are in a good position to improve on their first-round exit last season.