The Los Angeles Lakers are just over two years removed from their last
NBA trophy. With Lebron James and Anthony Davis leading the charge,
everyone thought the NBA got a new Lakers franchise. Unfortunately for
Lakers fans, the bubble trophy proved to be a blip, as the team hasn’t
had success so far.
The Lakers were ousted by the Phoenix Suns in the first round the next
year. Granted, Anthony Davis was not in great shape physically, but the
young Suns core proved too much for the LA team. As for 2022, Lakers
fans will want to forget it. The team didn’t even make the playoffs,
even after adding All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook this year.
Things aren’t looking up this year too, but the late resurgence has led
many to believe that things can turn around quickly.
Excitement to
Disappointment
Even before the season started, NBA
sportsbook odds didn’t see the Lakers as a major favorite for the
trophy. They were in the +7,000 bracket to the dismay of LA fans. Of
course, odds don’t mean a thing if a team plays great, but the Lakers
have had an abysmal start to the season. Westbrook continued playing
far worse than he can, Anthony Davis went down with an injury for a
longer period, and no matter how great he is, Lebron James can’t carry
teams on his back anymore. After all, he’s 37 and he’ll be 38 before
the year ends.
All that excitement died down when the season went underway. The
preseason should have offered some cues, with only one win in six
tries. They started the season with a loss against the Warriors before
losing the next 4 games for a 0-5 record. Flashes of their 2020 self
were shown in wins against the Nets, Trailblazers, and the
Milwaukee Bucks, but in general, this was one mess of a team.
One positive side of the whole story is Anthony Davis resurgence. The
Lakers can credit new coach Darvin Ham for it. In the past, Davis has
been reluctant to play the center position. He likes a freer role, but
this season he has embraced it. And the Lakers have been far better
with that. Ham has instructed the Brow to play at center, and boy, has
he delivered.
If you’re following the NBA every day, you know that Davis has been
playing like a monster when healthy. His historic
two-game stretch saw him post incredible numbers. He torched the
Wizard scoring 55 points on 22-30 shooting. He also got 17 rebounds
that game. It followed a 44-point outburst against the Bucks which saw
LA win against Giannis Antetokounmpo’s team. That’s 99 points in just
two games, and out of the team’s last 10 games, they’ve won in 8 with
Davis in the team.
This late resurgence puts him firmly into MVP consideration. Still, the
Lakers are not high up the rankings, still being even below the play-in
tournament. A lot of things need to happen for the Lakers to contend
again, but after a bit of initial disappointment, Darvin Ham seems to
be doing the right things.
He asked Davis to play center and he agreed after dodging the bullet
for a few years. He’s now bringing Westbrook off the bench instead of
playing him as a starter, and the Lakers are better. Things are looking
on the up, but playoff is still not within reach right now. One thing’s
for sure – if Anthony Davis continues to dominate LA’s games, they will
go up the rankings in a heartbeat.
The Wembanyama Stakes?
With Lebron James nearing the end of his illustrious career, the Lakers
will need another showtime star. That player might be Victor
Wembanyama. While tanking is prohibited to get a certain player, many
are believed to have already entered the Wemby stakes. The Lakers have
never been a team hunting for players on the draft, but this player is
in a whole different league.
If they falter again this year, who knows what the Lakers are ready to
give up to get the franchise’s new star? They won’t pick first for
sure, but hey, the draw of the Lakers might be too much to ignore for
the league’s future face.
