Now that free agency is coming to a close, we finally get a great look of how this 2020 season is going to pan out. What I noticed about this year though is that you did not see many teams get noticeably better. If anything, a lot of teams lost key pieces to non contenders. There was one team in my eyes that really improved on paper this offseason, that is the Los Angeles Lakers.
Making the Right Trades
With their trades this offseason, the Lakers really got their money’s worth. First, they traded Danny Green to OKC for Dennis Schröder. After losing Rondo to free agency, LA knew they needed to acquire more talent at the PG position. Schröder is a serious improvement for the Lakers compared to Rondo and Avery Bradley. He came in 2nd place for 6th man of the year and averaged nearly 19 pts per game last season. The Lakers were seriously lacking in shot creation in the back court last year, Schröder brings that and then some. To go with his shot creation, he shot 41% on catch-and-shoot-3s, 44% when they were wide open. This is the type of player LeBron loves as a facilitating slasher. Even though he came off the bench in OKC, expect Schröder to start at PG.
A smaller yet still important trade the Lakers made was shipping JaVale McGee to Cleveland for Jordan Bell and Alfonzo McKinney. Last season, McGee was almost unplayable in the postseason because of his fatigue and offensive play. Adding Jordan Bell and McKinney to the mix will help because they know how to play into a role as you saw with their deep runs in Golden State. Expect these two to make solid impacts off the bench for L.A. this year.
Free Agency Steals
The first free agency move I want to talk about it is the resigning of KCP. This was a great sign for the Lakers, however I would have liked to see him get paid a little less (3 yrs – $40 Million). With that being said, he played a huge role down the stretch for L.A. last season shooting 38% from 3 in the playoffs. To add, he played some great defense in the playoffs as well. Having him back to play SG next to Schröder will put together a solid back court for the Lake Show.
Another nice signing for the Lakers was Wesley Matthews. With having a similar play style and comparable stats to Danny Green, L.A. picks up an equivalent to what they got rid of. Matthews is a tough player who will hit those catch and shoot 3s that Green was unable to hit in the postseason. Many people doubted Matthews ability after he suffered a torn achilles in 2015, but he has been around 37% from 3 since the injury. Matthews is the type of vet that fits perfectly in LeBron’s offensive style.
Improving the Front Court
After losing Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee, the Lakers needed to add a couple of pieces to the front court to help AD. This is where the Lakers really hit the jackpot. They were able to sign Marc Gasol (2 yrs – $5.3 Million). Gasol even with his older age is one of the smartest players in the league. On defense, he always is in the right position and has no problem barking out where his teammates need to be either. To add, he is a great post defender who will match up nicely against a Jokic type player come playoff time.
One more steal that the Lakers acquired was last year’s 6th Man of The Year Montrezl Harrell (2 yrs – $19 Million). Harrell is a spark plug that the Lakers will need both coming off the bench and occasionally starting. Since he is not the greatest defenders, he will probably head to the sideline late in games. However, his role with the Lakers will be huge in that second unit with Caruso and Kuzma.
Can L.A. Run it Back?
The only problem I could see any fan having with these trades and signings is that they may think some of these guys are too old. I am here to tell you that ALL of these guys can still play. LeBron James plays better in a system that has veteran players who know their role. On top of that, he prefers to play with guys that have more playoff experience. With young players, they will begin to expect a bigger role as they play a little more. That is not how James operates as you saw when the Lakers initially traded their young talent to New Orleans for AD last offseason. It seems crazy to think another team will be able to top L.A. this season, back to back may be in their reach.