The newly assembled Lakers are highly overrated

[Vermont Green]

Cousins is such a terrible signing.  He was a questionable fit with Davis when he was healthy and in his prime.  Now that he appears to no longer be the same player, and has clearly lost a lot of mobility, the Lakers will find out quickly they can't play him anything more than reserve minutes.

I haven't really looked hard enough at the rest of the roster to make an informed opinion otherwise, but it does seem like LAL is pinning all of their defensive responsibility on Davis alone.

Even if he’s a reserve, they invested barely anything.

I think Cousins is going to be the key.  If he only plays at a reserve level, that will limit them some.  If he can play at a high level (not necessarily elite level) the Lakers are going to be tough.  Cousins is 28 years old.  He should be able to get his body ready to play at a high level but he will have to work much harder than he probably ever has before.  Not sure if he has the discipline to put in the work or not.

[Roy H.]

They will need nothing short of a miracle to win it all

I think this is overstating things. They need some mild good fortune, which is true of just about every NBA team.

Is there a contending team without injury concerns? Certainly not the Clippers or Houston.

LAL has a legit shot at a title. I don’t see their odds being much different than LAC, Milwaukee, Philly, Utah or Houston.

[tazzmaniac]

I see them as a 4 seed in the West.

Clippers to me are much deeper, and remember, that team took a healthy Warriors team to 6 games last April. And while they lost a few pieces (SGA, Gallinari), they added Kawhi + PG13. Plus they have the better coach. Think Houston and LAC will be the Top-2 teams in the West, and I think people are underestimating Utah. They are DEEP.

The Lakers still have a lot of wild cards in terms of not knowing how they'll thrive (Rondo, McGee, KCP, Cousins) and basically, if one of AD/Lebron goes down for some time I think that team becomes screwed.

If the Lakers are looking at 4th seed and facing the Clips in the 2nd round, they'll lose a few games to drop down to 6th/7th.  Do you honestly think Houston led by Harden and CP3 can beat the Lakers led by Lebron and AD in a playoff series?   Being deep doesn't win you playoff series.  Better talent does.  I wouldn't be surprised if Utah ends up as the 2nd seed in the regular season but they aren't beating the Lakers led by Lebron and AD in a playoff series.

The Clips are the one West team that does appear to be better than the Lakers in the playoffs.  However the Lakers would have a fighting chance against the Clips.  Also with the discussion of Laker's health, it should also be considered that Kawhi and PG aren't paragons of health. 

[tazzmaniac]

They will need nothing short of a miracle to win it all

I think this is overstating things. They need some mild good fortune, which is true of just about every NBA team.

Is there a contending team without injury concerns? Certainly not the Clippers or Houston.

LAL has a legit shot at a title. I don’t see their odds being much different than LAC, Milwaukee, Philly, Utah or Houston.

I agree.  However assuming health for all the teams, I don't think Utah or Houston are on the same tier as the other 4 teams in regards to contending for the championship. 

[liam]

Right now the three best players that the Lakers have are port forwards. Kuzma, Davis and Bron Bron.... They need someone who can guard the smaller quicker players.

[Sketch5]

I have a feeling GSW may go after Stevens with Russell(possible three way) and if Thompson can get healthy in time, they'll be tough as well.

Clippers
Lakers
GSW
Utah
Potland
Denver
Huston

These teams are very close, can be anyones game. Might come down to who's healthy through out and at the end of the season.

[tazzmaniac]

Right now the three best players that the Lakers have are port forwards. Kuzma, Davis and Bron Bron.... They need someone who can guard the smaller quicker players.

Danny Green is a good defender but they could use another one.  I'd go more wing defense maybe RHJ.  Matching up with Kawhi and PG is going to be tough. 

[tazzmaniac]

I have a feeling GSW may go after Stevens with Russell(possible three way) and if Thompson can get healthy in time, they'll be tough as well.

Clippers
Lakers
GSW
Utah
Potland
Denver
Huston

These teams are very close, can be anyones game. Might come down to who's healthy through out and at the end of the season.

Who is Stevens? 

[wiley]

I have a feeling GSW may go after Stevens with Russell(possible three way) and if Thompson can get healthy in time, they'll be tough as well.

Clippers
Lakers
GSW
Utah
Potland
Denver
Huston

These teams are very close, can be anyones game. Might come down to who's healthy through out and at the end of the season.

Who is Stevens?

I couldn't figure that out either.  But it made me think that a good move for the warriors would be to trade Russell for Steven Adams. 

[cman88]

They will need nothing short of a miracle to win it all

I think this is overstating things. They need some mild good fortune, which is true of just about every NBA team.

Is there a contending team without injury concerns? Certainly not the Clippers or Houston.

LAL has a legit shot at a title. I don’t see their odds being much different than LAC, Milwaukee, Philly, Utah or Houston.

yeah, alot has to do with luck/injuries etc. would toronto have won if golden state didnt lose half their team?

[SHAQATTACK]

OLD Pelicans +Lebron and new uniforms .

[celticsclay]

Don't think this team is built to win a ton of regular season games.

This is a get to the playoffs all healthy team.

I no longer fear LeBron lead teams. I'm not buying into he can still turn on beast mode.

Except he did in the previous playoffs taking a very mediocre Cavs team to the finals.  So unless his injury last year signaled more to come there's no reason to believe he can't do so again.  He's playing with AD who is the most talented teammate he's ever has and also a very good fit. 

Winning a lot of games in the regular season doesn't get you anything but a top seed and home court in the playoffs.  Other than the Clips and assuming good health, the Lakers should be the favorite against any West team regardless of seed.

When you are 35 it is certainly not wise to assume what you did 2 years ago is easy to replicate

You don't have to look back two years.  Even with the injury, Lebron put up 27.4pts, 8.5reb and 8.3ast on a team with a bunch of young players and limited vets.  Now he's going to be playing with another top 10 star who fits very well with him.

You were referencing the playoff run he had with Cleveland to discuss him carrying a team. By this years playoffs that will be two years later, that is a tremendous amount of time at his age (even without the injury). Also people are pretty intrigued by his counting stats last year, I saw a lot of stat chasing and the worst defense of his career. Again it is far from a given that Lebron is even a top ten player in the spring of 2020 (it’s certainly possible, but it is baffling all those saying it is a sure thing)

[dreamgreen]

I watched NBA tv today and the guy had to rate top duos in the league and he had LBJ/AD over KL/PG13! I was shocked to say the least.

I knew Cousins would land there after KL gave them the bird!

Overall I'm really excited. I see a lot more balance in the league today than last year should make for some really good competition! Hail to KL for having the balls to go to the Clippers over the Fakers!

[Emmette Bryant]

I've been a Celtic fan since '59 and I hate the Lakers as much as anyone. But to not acknowledge that the Lakers have assembled a legit contender is IMO misguided. Certainly, if Lebron or Davis suffer significant injuries, their chances are diminished. But you can say that about any contender who loses a #1 or #2 player. Many posters say that the Lakers don't have any outside shooting and that opponents will pack the paint. Well, Green, Lebron and others will have a ton of uncontested 3s. Also, I was hoping the Lakers wouldn't get Rondo. Rondo will have as many good passing options as he had with the '08 Celtics. Right now the Lakers are the #2 rated team behind LAC and that's how Vegas sees it.

This is pretty much how I see it.

TP for being a Celtics fan longer than me. I jumped on board in 1966.