Aloha,
Talk about a crazy year. When the schedule came out, it looked like the Lakers were going to be severely challenged. But we find ourselves the 3rd seed and 1. 1/2 games out of first with the 5th best record in the NBA.
I think JJ has proven that he is up for the job. Moving DLO to the 2nd unit has made a world of difference. It has balanced the team, giving us DLO and Dalton to go with LeBron. Now the bench is scoring.
There are defensive concerns but our offense has become one of the best in the league. Hopefully the return of Vando will help in that area. Adding Cam to the starters has helped our defense and it’s been pretty good during our 5 game winning streak.
JJ wants a 9 man rotation but I really think we should go 10 deep. I don’t think it’s wise to play LeBron and AD extended minutes every night.
Austin is shooting 36% from 3 but I think he will be better. If he can get it up to 38% or better he can be that 3rd star. He is flourishing in this offense and averaging 18 a game with nearly6 assists and 5 boards. The best of his career.
In Dalton we finally have that motion 3 point shooter. We have other guys that are good 3 point shooters but Dalton can shoot on the move which we didn’t have before,
Now if we can just get all our guys healthy at once perhaps we can figure out how good this team can be. Starting at the end of this month, through most of December most of our games are on the road. I think we only have 4 or 5 at home. That will be a real test. I hope we pass. If we get through that stretch on a positive note, this team might be contenders after all.
JJ has certainly been a breath of fresh air. I’m already confident he is going to become a great head coach for the Lakers.
I also agree with you on a 10-man rotation. Need to learn to win without AD and LeBron. I still believe we need a trade for a starting center (Williams or Kessler).
If we could get a defense first point guard like Smart, we could even start Dalton and have Reaves become the 6th man off the bench. Or maybe DLO will stay and be a 6MOY candidate.
Lakers in good situation. Big question is what will Rob do if anything. Next move is about championships this year and next, which are probably LeBron’s last two shots as a Laker.