The Lakers’ offseason has been very quiet. Quite anticlimactic to say the least, as Lakers faithful year in and out expect many moves to be made. With the Lakers’ expectations high going into every season, the lack of desperation and moves made by the front office has put analysts and fans believing the Lakers will not be good this season. However, the Lakers haven’t had the most unsuccessful past couple of years. Following a successful trade deadline in 2023, they were able to make it as far in the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets. The following year they won the first-ever NBA Cup which was followed up by losing in the first round once again to the Nuggets. The ultimate goal for the purple and gold is to get their 18th Championship.
Lakers are Undervalued Heading into the 2024-25 Season
The Lakers finished 47-35 in the 2023-24 season. Despite falling short in the first round of the playoffs, the Lakers dealt with several injuries throughout the season that affected their success in the 2024 playoffs. Players like Cam Reddish, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Christian Wood didn’t play a single minute. These are impactful pieces of the roster on both ends of the floor that the Lakers look forward to getting back in full strength.
Moves This Offseason
- Hiring New Coaching Staff
The Lakers started by firing coach Darvin Ham on May 3rd. A month later came the breaking news that JJ Redick was hired for the new Lakers head coach job. A shocking move that made headlines as Redick has never had any experience of coaching level in the NBA. Weeks followed, the Lakers hired Nate McMillan, Scott Brooks, Bob Beyer, Greg St. Jean, Lindsey Harding, and Beau Levesque as assistant coaches. Additionally, the Lakers added Michael Wexler as head video coordinator.
- Draft Picks & Free Agency
In the NBA draft, they acquired Dalton Knecht in the first round with the 17th pick. The next day followed with LeBron James‘ son, Bronny James being drafted in the second round with the 55th pick. Since then, there have been minor changes to its roster heading into the season. Free agents like Taurean Prince and Spencer Dinwiddie have decided to go elsewhere. Prince signed a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. Dinwiddie signed a one-year deal to rejoice with the Dallas Mavericks. Besides the acquisition of new head coach Redick, the lack of urgency from the front office is what’s leaving people skeptical about the Lakers heading into this season.
LeBron James on the Lakers not making any off-season trades yet and his expectations on if the team stays as pic.twitter.com/8JGdQOnvos
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) July 6, 2024
Evaluating the Season Ahead
As the offseason is coming to a close, ESPN released its predictions for the Western Conference standings next season. The Lakers are predicted to be the 11th seed with a 44-38 record. This would mean that they would indeed have a worse season than last’s and not even make the play-in tournament. Despite these predictions, there is still a positive outlook when looking at the Lakers season ahead. Acquiring a fresh new coaching staff can ignite this team on both ends of the floor. Working under a new coaching staff is going to take time to mesh well together for the current roster, but the team has already gained more chemistry over the past several years.
The Lakers were one of the best teams in the league for the final three months of the regular season. Furthermore, they have one of the NBA’s best duos LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The two have proved that they’re still elite players in this summer’s Olympics and the NBA. The Lakers also have a quite fulfilled roster with many complementary players that expect to bounce back this year. No matter how slow of an offseason it has been for the purple and gold, there’s upside to be looked at. This is still a solid team that has a high ceiling. With a new coaching staff and a healthy roster, we are to see what Redick and the Lakers are capable of come October.
