{"id":121882,"date":"2025-02-04T09:55:14","date_gmt":"2025-02-04T14:55:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=121882"},"modified":"2025-02-04T09:55:14","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T14:55:14","slug":"lakers-tandem-getting-doubt-fuel-through-alarm-bells","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/02\/04\/lakers-tandem-getting-doubt-fuel-through-alarm-bells\/","title":{"rendered":"Lakers Tandem Getting ‘Doubt Fuel’ Through Alarm Bells"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Los Angeles Lakers<\/a>‘ blockbuster trade for Luka Doncic<\/a> created excitement, but it also raised major concerns. Analysts like Stephen A. Smith, Shannon Sharpe and Charles Barkley doubt whether LeBron James<\/a> and Doncic can lead the team to immediate success. Their skepticism revolves around the Lakers’ defense, which ranks\u00a021st<\/a> in defensive rating.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lakers Tandem, LeBron And Doncic Getting ‘Doubt Fuel’ Through Alarm Bells<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Anthony Davis<\/a> was the Lakers<\/a>‘ defensive anchor, but with him gone, Los Angeles now faces significant challenges. Doncic and James, both offensive juggernauts, struggle on defense. JJ Redick, in his first year as head coach, must now find ways to hide their weaknesses while maximizing their offensive dominance.<\/p>\n

Stephen A. Smith didn’t hold back when discussing the Lakers’ defensive issues.<\/p>\n

“When I’m looking at Luka and I’m looking at LeBron James, we know their greatness is not to be debated in any way. But you also know it’s going to take a team,”<\/em> Smith said<\/a> on First Take.<\/em> “You also know that they’re compromised tremendously on the defensive side of the ball.”<\/em><\/p>\n

The Western Conference is stacked with young, athletic teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a>, Memphis Grizzlies<\/a> and Houston Rockets<\/a>. If the Lakers fail to address their defensive shortcomings, they could struggle to keep up.<\/p>\n

Too Many Holes to Plug<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Shannon Sharpe echoed Smith\u2019s concerns, highlighting how the Lakers now have too many gaps to fill.<\/p>\n

“They don’t rebound particularly well. They don’t defend. We know LeBron doesn’t play defense, nor can he play defense at the level he once could,”<\/em> Sharpe pointed out<\/a>. “Luka doesn’t play any defense. They go at Austin Reaves. They don’t really have any defenders.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Austin Reaves<\/a>, a key starter, has regressed defensively as his offensive role has grown. Opposing teams frequently target him throughout games. Without Davis to clean up mistakes, the Lakers’ defensive issues could become even more glaring.<\/p>\n

Sharpe also emphasized how much the team will miss Davis’ versatility.<\/p>\n

“Anthony Davis is tremendous in the pick-and-roll, can defend one through five, has a great midrange shot, and can shoot the three\u2014obviously, we know all that. But right now, you’re talking about Luka, LeBron, and Austin Reaves playing defense?”<\/em><\/p>\n

The Lakers\u2019 front office understands these concerns. They have already been linked<\/a> to trade rumors involving New York Knicks<\/a> center Mitchell Robinson,<\/a> who could help protect the rim. But until they make additional moves, their defensive woes will remain a significant obstacle.<\/p>\n

Offensive Fit Raises Questions<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Beyond defensive concerns, some analysts question whether Doncic and James can truly coexist offensively. Barkley expressed doubts about their ability to share the ball.<\/p>\n

“This thing is not going to be smooth in L.A. with him and LeBron, because both of them want the ball 100 percent of the time,”<\/em> Barkley said<\/a>. “Luka does not move without the ball. LeBron does not move without the ball. There’s going to be some serious growing pains.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Doncic and James both have ball usage rates over 29%<\/a> and are among the league leaders in assist rate<\/a>. Their playing styles are remarkably similar, making it unclear how they will adjust.<\/p>\n

However, Doncic remains excited about joining the Lakers, following in the footsteps of previous superstar acquisitions like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar<\/a> and Kobe Bryant<\/a>. While the on-court fit isn\u2019t perfect, his arrival solidifies the Lakers as one of the most talented teams in the league offensively.<\/p>\n

Doncic and LeBron Poised to Turn Doubt Into Motivation<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The skepticism surrounding this Lakers team is valid, but doubt has fueled LeBron throughout his career. Doncic, still only 25, has also thrived under pressure.<\/p>\n

Redick, an intelligent coach, understands the adjustments needed to make this duo work. He will likely implement creative offensive sets to stagger their minutes and reduce defensive liabilities.<\/p>\n

The Lakers still need more roster upgrades, but they have two of the smartest players in basketball. If they can find a way to overcome their flaws, they could prove the doubters wrong and make a deep playoff run.<\/p>\n

The Los Angeles Lakers‘ blockbuster trade for Luka Doncic created excitement, but it also raised major concerns. Analysts like Stephen A. Smith, Shannon Sharpe and Charles Barkley doubt whether LeBron James and Doncic can lead the team to immediate success. Their skepticism revolves around the Lakers’ defense, which ranks\u00a021st in defensive rating. Lakers Tandem, LeBron […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5018,"featured_media":121886,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1608,26],"tags":[49979,240,4556,1006,2951,2279,38,1133,1616,3836],"class_list":["post-121882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-basketball","category-lakers","tag-2024-25-nba-season","tag-anthony-davis","tag-austin-reaves","tag-charles-barkley","tag-defense","tag-jj-redick","tag-lebron-james","tag-luka-doncic","tag-mitchell-robinson","tag-stephen-a-smith"],"modified_by":"Frederick Okocha","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5018"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121882"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121882\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":121888,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121882\/revisions\/121888"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/121886"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}