See where the Lakers stack up.
Have your new-look Los Angeles Lakers taken a massive leap in ESPN‘s latest NBA standings? Or are the Worldwide Leader’s top basketball minds less-than-enthused about the state of the Lake Show?
It turns out that ESPN’s collection of expert hoops analysts behind its weekly Power Rankings are not nearly as excited by the prospects of LA’s fully revamped roster as the writers of this website.
Team vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka made several proactive moves in the weeks leading up to the league’s trade deadline last Thursday.
All told, LA added three new starters in point guard D’Angelo Russell, shooting guard Malik Beasley, and power forward Jarred Vanderbilt, plus two critical bench pieces in combo forward Rui Hachimura and center Mo Bamba.
“[D’Angelo] Russell gave Lakers fans a dose of reality on Monday night,” ESPN beat reporter Dave McMenamin. “Yes, L.A.’s first win after the trade deadline at Golden State was impressive, but nights like the Lakers’ 127-115 loss to the Blazers are bound to happen too. ‘It’s not going to happen right away,’ he said. ‘As much as everybody are Laker fans in the world, they want it to happen right away. Just like any other team, you got to build.'”
What McMenamin seems to be discounting is that the Lakers’ first two games, both losses, happened without James or Bamba available. When both players suited up Wednesday, in a 120-102 shellacking of the visiting New Orleans Pelicans, LA looked impressively complete. Let’s see how they do after the All-Star break.
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