Lakerholics

The ongoing internal debate over whether the Lakers should revert back to two-big model used to win the 2020 championship in the bubble will likely determine what kind of Lakers team we see once the 2023–24 season starts.

Whether to revert to playing two-bigs is a debate the Lakers would likely not be having if there were clear-cut starters at each position. Without five clear starters, the question becomes what’s the best strategy for this roster? While the competition in training camp and preseason could change who starts and who comes off the bench, the Lakers clearly would like to start two-bigs like they did during their 2020 championship run in the bubble.

Right now, the Lakers are looking to add a starting center who can stretch the floor and balance the skillsets of their other center Jaxson Hayes, whom they see as a traditional defensive center similar to Dwight Howard. The primary candidate to be the Lakers’ stretch center is Christian Wood, who’s still hoping to get an offer for more than the veteran’s minimum. Other possible candidates include Davis Bertans and Markieff Morris.

Should the Lakers not sign Wood or a player who could start at center, they would then likely opt to start Jaxson Hayes at the five with Anthony Davis returning to his preferred four, except when he closes games at the five.
While the Lakers consider Hayes to be a defensive center in the mode of Howard or McGee, Jaxson has potential as a 3-point shooter and shot 35% from deep the year before last, making 20 of 57 threes over 70 games.

If the Lakers don’t find a stretch center to sign, they could turn to a veteran defensive center like Bismack Biyombo, who could start next to Davis or come off the bench. Right now, they’re holding out for a stretch five center. The Lakers could also decide Hachimura was the best stretch five option and go with him and AD as the two-bigs. Finally, a still growing Vanderbilt might have worked hard this summer and improved his 3-point shot.

So let’s look at the push and the pros and cons of the Lakers reverting back to the two-bigs model of 2020 where Wood or Hayes would start at the five with Davis at the four until he takes over the five to close out the game.

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The Push For Two-Bigs

For the second straight season, there’s a push for the Lakers to play two-bigs during the regular season like they did during their championship run in the bubble back with Davis at the four and Howard or McGee at the five.

Unfortunately, the disappointing play of Damian Jones and Thomas Bryant eliminated that option and forced the Lakers to go small during last year’s regular season with Anthony Davis at the five and LeBron James at the four. Needless to say, the roster’s lack of size at almost every position led to the Lakers being consistently outrebounded and struggling in the season and the playoffs to defend bigger players who were simply shooting over them.

One of the Lakers’ major goals this offseason was to fix their relative size disadvantage at every position by getting bigger in the backcourt, finding a second big to start at center, and moving James and Davis down a position. Lakers added size at point guard in 6′ 4″ Gabe Vincent and 6′ 6″ Jalen Hood-Schifino, at shooting guard in 6′ 7″ Maxwell Lewis, at small forward in 6′ 8″ Taurean Prince and 6′ 8″ Cam Reddish, and at center in 6′ 11″ Jaxson Hayes.

The Lakers’ desire to revert to the two-bigs model they used to win their 17th NBA championship in the bubble back in 2020 has them looking to add a more offensive oriented center like Christian Wood as their 14th player. With the Lakers signing Davis to a 3-year extension to lock him up for five years, they want to optimize the new face of the franchise, surround him with talent, and allow him to play his preferred power forward position.

Ironically, playing two-bigs gives the Lakers the opportunity to insert a front court player who can help the team improve their floor spacing by adding a lethal 3-point shooter at a position ripe for major mismatches. Starting a stretch five is probably the single easiest way for the Lakers to improve their team spacing as last season’s starting front court of James and Davis shot poorly from deep, shooting 32.1% and 25.7% respectively.

The push to play two-bigs has the Lakers essentially doubling down on their formula for winning by using size to dominate points-in-the-paint and made free throws and offset their not being a great 3-point shooting team.

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The Pros For Two-Bigs

The pros for the Lakers playing two-bigs start with obvious advantages of being bigger at every position — more rebounds, points-in-the-paint, and made free throws — plus less wear-and-tear on superstars James and Davis.

Last season, the Lakers finished 6th in rebounding with 44.7 rebound per game but 25th in opponent rebounding by allowing 44.9 rebounds per game. In other words, the Lakers lost the rebounding battle last season. The hope would be by bringing in another 7-footer to start at the five and moving Anthony Davis down to the four and LeBron James down to the three, the Lakers would then be able to control the boards this season.

The same logic holds true for points-in-the-paint and made free throws. Last season, the Lakers finished 6th with 54.5 points-in-the-paint but 23rd by allowing 52.8 points-in-the-paint by opponents, a plus 1.7 differential. Last season, the Lakers’ 20.6 made free throws per game was 2nd while their 16.1 opponent free throws made was 1st in NBA. The Lakers hope playing two-bigs will increase points-in-the-paint and made free throws.

Playing two-bigs also gives the Lakers an opportunity to insert a modern stretch five center into their starting lineup who can stretch the floor and improve the team’s poor front court 3-point shooting by James and Davis. Adding Christian Wood or even a small ball five like Davis Bertans or Markieff Morris could significantly improve the Lakers’ floor spacing. There’s no reason Lakers playing two-bigs sacrifices 3-point shooting.

Finally, maybe the biggest reason the Lakers want to play two-bigs is to allow Anthony Davis to play his preferred position of power forward as he takes the baton from LeBron James and becomes the face of the franchise. The Lakers need to reduce their reliance on their two superstars, hopefully even embracing some load management by limiting them to 30 minutes per game. I know LeBron and AD hate load management but they need it.

Bottom line, the Lakers need to play two-bigs because it will improve their rebounding, points-in-the-paint, made free throws, and 3-point shooting and reduce reliance and workloads of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

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The Cons Against Two-Bigs

The cons against the Lakers playing two-bigs revolve around how it would hurt their spacing, rely too much on Jaxson Hayes, move Anthony Davis away from the rim, and wear LeBron James out defending small forwards.

How another big affects the Lakers’ spacing will depend on which big. While the Lakers won the title in 2020 with non-shooters Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee starting at center, that may not work in today’s NBA. That’s why the Lakers want Christian Wood, whose great offensive skills, including lethal 3-point shooting, would modernize the team’s front court and actually help spread the court so LeBron and AD can attack the rim.

Spacing becomes a major issue if the Lakers cannot sign Christian Wood. Do they settle for a small ball five like Bertans or Morris? Or do they instead start Jaxson Hayes or a defensive center like Bismack Biyombo. While he may not be their first choice, the Lakers are confident that Jaxson Hayes can be their starting center and see him as very much in the mode of Dwight Howard or JaVale McGee. They’re counting on Jaxson Hayes.

The other major cons against two-bigs is that it moves Anthony Davis from the five, where he has been a dominant force at both ends of the court, and moves LeBron James to the three, where he’ll be challenged defensively. For the last three years, Anthony Davis and LeBron James have started at the five and four, partly because the Lakers just could not seem to find a starting quality center to pair with AD. There’s risk in changing positions.

Many observers believe center is Anthony Davis’ best position because he ends up playing closer to the basket and thus making a higher percentage of his shots. They especially worry that AD can no longer shoot the three. Meanwhile, there’s no question that power forward is a better position for 38-year old LeBron James to play than small forward. The last thing the Lakers want is LeBron chasing shooters around and through screens.

If the Lakers opt to play two-bigs, they’ll have to figure out how to deal with spacing, how to get Jaxson Hayes to fill the starting center role, and how to help LeBron James and Anthony Davis deal with changing positions.

While Rob Pelinka and Darvin Ham have done a great job transforming the Lakers into legitimate contenders, their greatest achievement could turn out to be how they’ve positioned the team to transition from LeBron James.

As Kobe’s agent, Pelinka remembers how tough it was on the Lakers after the team gave Bryant his last big contract and it took a decade to recover and win after Mamba retired. Rob’s committed not to let that happen again. Every move the Lakers made at the trade deadline and this summer was part of a plan to create a roster that could both win without LeBron James and complement and empower Anthony Davis as team’s alpha superstar.

While all the talk of retirement may be premature, Pelinka and Ham know the coming year could be the last year LeBron James wears purple and gold. He might retire or might leave to play with Bronny on another team. The Lakers must be ready to move on. They worked hard over the last year remaking the roster into a legitimate contender and cleaning up their cap sheet so that they have a bevy of tradable contracts and draft capital.

Pelinka and Ham not only built a championship caliber roster that could give James and Davis a chance to win this season but they did it exclusively with younger players specifically chosen for their fits with AD’s timeline. The Lakers did not even add a single player over 30 years of age. Instead, they added young, big, long, athletic players who better fit AD’s timeline and would still be in their prime long after LeBron James had retired.

As the Lakers add the final touches to next season’s roster, Pelinka and Ham have the team perfectly positioned to make a smooth and successful three-step transition from LeBron James to the Anthony Davis era.

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Step 1: Agreeing Upon Anthony Davis’ Extension

Step 1 to transition from LeBron James is getting Anthony Davis to sign an extension. Davis will be eligible on August 4th to sign a 3-year $167.6 million extension, committing him to the Lakers for 5-years $251.4 million.

While critics can complain about the games missed due to injuries and the inconsistency on offense, Pelinka and Ham know how essential Anthony Davis is to the Los Angeles Lakers’ current or future championship hopes. The Lakers would be fools to try and trade Davis with this possibly being James’ last year in purple and gold. Internally, the Lakers know they have no option other than to go all-in on Anthony Davis at this point in time.

By locking Davis up for the next five years, the Lakers get the anchor they need to make a smooth and successful transition from LeBron James. It also allows James the freedom to stay with the team as long as he wants. The Lakers know they need continuity to win championships and that starts with locking up Davis for the next five years. Look closely and you can see this roster was built more for Anthony Davis than LeBron James.

The Lakers expressed desire to return to the two-bigs model they used to win the 2020 championship in the bubble is another sign that the Lakers are committed to signing superstar Anthony Davis to a 3-year extension. The Lakers grand plan is to move forward with Anthony Davis and a second superstar who would replace LeBron James, They’ve built a roster that should make them the most coveted landing spot for NBA superstars.

And that is how it should be going forward. Maybe LeBron will bounce back and hold Father Time off for another year but the Lakers are betting on this being Anthony Davis’ team and AD taking the torch from LeBron.

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Step 2: Building Roster To Complement Anthony Davis

Step 2 to transition from LeBron James is building a roster to complement and empower Anthony Davis, which is exactly what Pelinka and Ham have successfully been doing since the trade deadline and over the summer.

The Lakers signing Anthony Davis to an extension and then suddenly wanting to revert back to the two-big model used to win their 17th championship in not coincidence. It’s the Lakers doing what AD wants. From the day he joined the Lakers, AD has always been willing to play the five when needed but preferred to play the four. That’s why the Lakers are so focused on Christian Wood. They want a stretch five to play with AD.

And while Pelinka and Ham built a team that could contend for a title, they also did something remarkable in its success and daring, which is build a roster designed to complement Anthony Davis instead of LeBron James; Look at the ages of the players the Lakers have assembled: James 38, Davis 30, Prince 29, Russell 27, Vincent 27, Reaves 25, Hachimura 25, Vanderbilt 24, Hayes 23, Reddish 23, Lewis 20, Hood-Schifino 20, Christie 20.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis are the only Lakers players on the roster over 30-years old. This roster was specifically built for Anthony Davis’ championship window rather than LeBron James possible last season.
The only ways the Lakers acquire a superstar to replace LeBron James is to trade for one or sign one as a free agent. What Pelinka and Ham have done is collect assets that give the Lakers great flexibility to replace James.

The Lakers have one final roster spot to fill, which they plan to fill with a stretch big who space the court and provide more shooting. Top candidates are Christian Wood, Bismack Biyombo, Rudy Gay, and Davis Bertans.

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Step 3: Acquiring LeBron James’ Replacement

Step 3 to transition from LeBron James is acquiring the superstar player to replace him, which is always the most difficult step to accomplish. The Lakers can either sign James’ replacement in free agency or trade for him.

How the Lakers replace LeBron will depend on when and how he decides to leave the team. James has a player option for next season, which could make him an free agent next year if he were to exercise it next summer. What James decides will obviously depend heavily on what happens this season. It’s also possible that LeBron feels so good about his own health and the team the Lakers have put together that he signs an extension.

Frankly, the last thing the Lakers want to see is LeBron exercise his player option and retire next season as there is no way with their recent additions that they could clear enough cap space to replace James via free agency. They’re hoping LeBron will decline his player option and play out the last two years of his contract. That would allow for teams, players, and fans to enjoy the farewell tour LeBron deserves for all he’s done for the NBA.

Strategically, that would allow the Lakers to potentially position themselves to be able to clear enough cap space to use James’ expiring salary to sign his replacement via free agency or trade or sign-and-trade for a superstar. After the 2024–25 season, the Lakers would have 6 players under contract for $89 million in salaries. With a projected salary cap of $156 million, the Lakers should easily be able to clear cap space for a max salary superstar.

While it wouldn’t surprise anybody if Davis and James both ended up signing extensions, the Lakers project LeBron James to decline his 2024–25 player option and play the final year of his contract before finally retiring.

If we’re to believe Rob Pelinka, one of the major changes the Lakers could be planning to deploy for the coming season is to go “back to the two-big model they used” to win their 2020 NBA Championship in the bubble.

Pelinka told ESPN the Lakers “have had talks with Anthony Davis about going back to the two-big model they used with Dwight Howard/JaVale McGee.” He also said “it was a big reason why Jaxson Hayes was signed.” Before Pelinka’s comments, Rui Hachimura was expected to be the fifth starter along with James, Davis, Reaves, and Russell. Not it looks as if the Lakers may also experiment in training camp with Jaxon Hayes starting.

During their 2020 championship regular season and playoffs, the Lakers two-big lineups dominated points-in-the-paint by 7.0 points per game while remaining close with respect to free throws made and 3-pointers made. Unfortunately, the move to play more small ball with Anthony Davis at center during the next three seasons led to the Lakers’ points-in-the-paint differential and positional size advantage completely disappearing.

That’s why the Lakers’ desire to return to the two-big model that won the championship should be a smart move, especially after losing to the bigger Nuggets and watching more and more teams opting to go with two-bigs.

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Why Lakers Should Start Jaxson Hayes at Center

Starting Jaxson Hayes at the five with Anthony Davis at the four in a two-big lineup is more about the Lakers’ need to get bigger to dominate the boards and the paint than a pressing need to find minutes for the young 7-footer.

Frankly, by going big, the Lakers are essentially doubling down on their proven game strategy of winning the points-in-the-paint and free-throws-made competitions by more than they lose the the 3-point competition. Starting two bigs also makes a lot of sense to help the Lakers navigate the long regular season. It can help win games and reduces the wear-and-tear on Anthony Davis to keeps him fresh and healthy for the playoffs.

That’s not to say that Jaxson Hayes is not a talented young player with great size and athleticism. At 7′ 0″ and 220 lbs, Hayes’ four years with the Pelicans is filled with highlight reels of thunderous dunks and eye-dropping blocks. In his third season with the Pels, Hayes started 28 games and averaged 9.3 points, 4.5 boards, 0.6 assists, 0.8 blocks, and 0.6 steals in 20.0 minutes per game shooting 55.1% from field, 35.1% from deep, 76.6% from the line.

Unfortunately, Hayes’ fourth season was derailed by injuries that led to his play regressing and limited him to just 47 games. In the end, the Pelicans decided it was best to let Jaxson Hayes walk for nothing as a free agent.
The Lakers are hoping they can reach Hayes and get him to buy in to doing what they need from him as a big playing with and without Anthony Davis. The Lakers hope their staff can do for Hayes’ what they did for Monk.

Hayes doesn’t need to play like an all star for the Lakers two-big model to work. All he has to do is play solid drop coverage, rebound the ball, and protect the rim on defense and dunk every chance he gets on offense.
His presence alone with transform the Lakers’ dynamic at both ends and free up LeBron James and Anthony Davis to slide down a position and enjoy positional size advantage to dominate the paint going forward.

The Lakers wanted to go back to the two-big model to start last season but neither Damian Jones or Thomas Bryant was good enough to fill the starter role so the Lakers were forced to revert back to Anthony Davis at center. There’s a good chance that Jaxson Hayes will prove capable of holding down the starting center role next to Anthony Davis. It may not happen immediately but it’s high on the Lakers list of priorities for next season.

The Los Angeles Lakers need to restore the positional size advantage they enjoyed when they won their 17th championship in 2020 by starting 7′ 0″ center Jaxson Hayes alongside 6′ 11″ Anthony Davis in a two-big lineup.

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Why Lakers Should NOT Start Jaxson Hayes at Center

The main reason the Lakers should not start the Jaxson Hayes at center alongside Anthony Davis in a two-big lineup because playing two bigs who don’t even shoot 30% from deep does not work in the modern NBA.

What the Lakers need to realize is this is no longer 2020. LeBron and AD are three years older and the teams with whom they’re competing are bigger and better than the ones they faced and defeated in the bubble. Strategically, what the Lakers need in a starting center is a legitimate stretch five who has the 3-point gravity to insure his defender remains attached and isn’t sagging off to pack the paint against LeBron and AD.

While the Lakers would like to return to the two-big model, they realize the only way they can effectively do that is with a center who can shoot the ball and space the floor rather than a traditional defensive oriented center. That’s why the Lakers are interested in Christian Wood, who not only has the size and length to protect the rim but also is an elite 3-level scorer who has shot over 50% from the field and over $37% from deep the last 4 years.

While the Lakers are hoping to be able to sign Christian Wood to a free agent minimum salary contract, there’s potential competition from the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat that could end up paying him more money. Wood is holding out hoping the Bulls, Heat, or Lakers will end up offering him more than the minimum. He desperately wants to avoid the negative stigma of having to accept a veteran’s minimum salary to stay in the league.

The Lakers do have the ability to pull off a sign-and-trade with the Mavs for Christian Wood but it would mean trading fan favorite Jarred Vanderbilt, who will be on the final year of his very favorable $4.7 million contract. One major benefit of trading for Wood is it gives the Lakers his Bird rights so they could go over the cap to re-sign him instead of possibly losing him to free agency like happened with Malik Monk and Lonnie Walker.

As for Hayes, the Lakers see him as more in the Howard/McGee mold of defensive center who starts and eats minutes but doesn’t close games in the regular season and becomes the backup center off bench in the playoffs. While he’s not Christian Wood, Jaxson Hayes shot 35.1% while making 57 threes in 70 games 2 years ago and has consistently shot over 70% from the line since being in the league. Only 23, he could develop into a stretch 4/5.

The Lakers desire to play two-bigs could shape the team’s starting lineup for the coming season. Whether Christian Wood or Jaxson Hayes, the Lakers focus in camp and preseason will be testing the two-big model.

Just when you thought the Lakers were done making trades this offseason, the Dallas Mavericks raised the possibility that they might be willing to make Christian Wood available in a sign-and-trade for the right player.

This news immediately raised the possibility of the Dallas Mavericks signing-and-trading stretch forward/center Christian Wood for the Los Angeles Lakers ace defensive forward and fan favorite Jarred Vanderbilt. The 27-year old 6′ 9,” 214 lb Wood is the perfect stretch four/five the Lakers need to create space and driving lanes for superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis to attack the paint and get to the rim for easy baskets.

While trading Vanderbilt would be a tough pill to swallow, Wood is a greater overall talent and better fit for what LeBron James and Anthony Davis need right now, which is a modern center who can stretch the floor. Under the new CBA rules for team’s under the hard cap, the Lakers could accept a 3-year sign-and-trade contract for as much as $9.6 million per year giving them Wood’s Bird rights so they could go over the cap to re-sign him.

The Lakers should trade for Christian Wood to upgrade the team’s 3-point shooting, add a clutch scorer to close games, increase team’s positional size advantage, secure Wood’s Bird rights, and open a roster spot for Biyombo.

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1. Upgrade Team’s 3-Point Shooting

Christian Wood is exactly the kind of elite shooter with 3-point gravity to keep defenders attached and open up floor space and driving lanes for Lakers’ superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis to get to the rim.

During the 2022–23 season, the Los Angeles Lakers 31.2 3-point attempts per game ranked 27th, their 10.8 3-point shots made per game ranked 24th, and their 34.6% 3-point completion percentage ranked 25th in the league. During the playoffs, the Lakers 33.5 3-point attempts per game ranked 14th out of 16 teams, their 10.1 3-point shots made per game ranked 13th, and their 33.5% 3-point completion percentage ranked 11th in the league.

In last four seasons, Wood has made 37.6%, 39.0%, and 37.4%, and 38.6% from deep. During those 4 years, he made 367 out of 961 3-point attempts for a completion percentage of 38.2% on 4.0 3-point attempts per game. During his last three years, Vanderbilt averaged 32.2%, 14.3%, and 20% from deep. During those 3 years, he made 32 out of 109 3-point attempts for a completion percentage of 29.4% on 0.5 3-point attempts per game.

One of advantages of trading Vanderbilt for Wood is it would dramatically improve the Lakers 3-point shooting volume and percentage and create better spacing for superstars James and Davis to attack the paint and rim.

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2. Adds Clutch Scorer To Close Games

One can question Wood’s defensive inconsistencies and issues but, with his size and athleticism, he was the NBA’s most efficient three-level scorers in the league, able to score efficiently from deep, midrange, or at the rim.

Over the last four years, Wood averaged 16.6, 17.9, 21.0, 13.1 points in 25.9, 30.8, 32.3, 21.4 minutes per game while shooting 51.5%, 50.1%, 51.4%, 56.7% from the field and 37.6%, 39.0%, 37.4%, 38.6% on 3-point shots.
Wood is a proven three-level scorer who can efficiently shoot the three ball, pull up for a midrange jumper, or attack the rim with vicious dunks. He would give the Lakers a great third option to close games in the clutch.

One of the Lakers biggest weaknesses was not having an elite offensive scorer whom they could give the ball to get a shot to close out games. Christian Wood would give the Lakers a clutch scorer to close out games. The Lakers desperately need a player like DeRozan, Bogdanovic, or Wood who can get to his spot and get a high quality shot whenever he wants. Watch the above video and you can see Wood’s upside is elite starter.

Unlike featuring LeBron who’s slowing down or AD who needs somebody to get him the ball, the Lakers can just give the ball to Wood and trust him to go one-on-one and get a great shot regardless who’s defending him.

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3. Increases Positional Size Advantage

One of the advantages of the Lakers trading for Christian Wood is he gives them a perfect stretch four or five to play alongside Anthony Davis in a two-big lineup like the Lakers ran to win the 2020 championship in the bubble.

By starting the 6′ 9″ Christian Wood next to the 6′ 11″ Anthony Davis and 6′ 9″ LeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers immediately become a bigger and better team at both ends of the court, dominating the boards and paint. During the last four four years, Christian averaged 7.3, 10.1, 9.6, and 6.3 rebounds per game, 1.1, 1.0, 1.2, and 0.9 blocks per game, and 0.4, 0.8, 0.8, and 0.5 steals per game in 25.9, 30.8, 32.3, and 21.4 minutes per game.

While there have been troubling incidents in the past, the Lakers coaching staff knows how to reach players and get the best out of them. Were a sign-and-trade to happen, there’d definitely be direct discussions with Wood. There’s always the risk that the player is just incorrigible and even Darvin Ham cannot reach him but the reward is essentially the opportunity to trade for a lottery level talent who could be a long-time star for the team.

Trading for Christian Wood would give the Lakers positional size advantage in the front court while at the same time improving the teams floor spacing and 3-point shooting and unleashing even more paint and rim dominance.

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4. Secures Christian Wood’s Bird Rights

While it’s difficult to trade a fan favorite who was at the heart of the team making the conference finals after starting 2–10, securing Christian Wood’s Bird rights so they could keep him long term is worth Jarred Vanderbilt.

The Lakers’ front office and coaching staff have great confidence in their judgement and ability to transform talented young players who’ve struggled with other teams and help them rehabilitate their careers like Malik Monk. Trading for Christian Wood instead of signing him for the minimum as a free agent would give the Lakers his Bird rights, which would enable them to go over the cap to re-sign him and prevent losing him like Malik Monk.

Christian Wood is in many ways the perfect third big for the Lakers as he can play the four or five, has the ability to space the floor with his 3-point shooting, and can protect the rim with his 6′ 9″ height and 7′ 3″ wingspan. While trading for Christian Wood will cost Vando and bring risks due to previous behavior issues, the upside of being able to acquire a potential second level star player is too great an opportunity for the Lakers to pass.

If the Lakers believe they can transform Christian Wood into a valuable stretch four/five, then it makes sense to trade Jarred Vanderbilt for him so that L.A. has his Bird rights and can go over the cap to re-sign him.

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5. Opens Roster Spot for Biyombo

With the free agent signing of 6′ 8″ small forward Taurean Prince, the Los Angeles Lakers finally have a legitimate 3&D wing who can shoot over 40% from deep and defend the bigger wing scorers Vando would usually guard.

In addition to Prince, the Lakers also re-signed Rui Hachimura and signed Cam Reddish, both of whom they’re high on offensively and defensively. Trading Vanderbilt should eliminate a likely minutes jam up at the three. Trading for Wood helps balance the roster and opens up a roster spot for Bismack Biyombo, who would give the Lakers an experienced defensive center to expand and balance the team’s skill sets at the center position.

At 27-years old, the opportunity for the Lakers to trade Jarred Vanderbilt for a signed-and-traded Christian Wood is almost too good to be true. That it helps balance the roster and opens a roster spot for Bismack is a plus. Realistically, this is the kind of move the Lakers would have to wait until the trade deadline to pull off. It’s exactly the kind of low risk, sky-high value opportunity Rob Pelinka should take full and immediate advantage of.

Trading a one-dimensional small forward in Jarred Vanderbilt for a versatile modern center in Christian Wood would enable the Lakers to sign Bismack Biyombo as their third center while leaving one roster spot open.

The Lakers have surrounded superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis with an impressive collection of battle-tested young talent that can not only win now but also be part of building championship rosters for the future.

While the Lakers are bringing back all 5 starters and 2 of 5 main backups, they’re also relying on a new untested backups at point guard in Gabe Vincent, small forward in Taurean Prince, and center in Jaxson Hayes. Vincent should be an upgrade over Schroder and Prince finally means the Lakers will have a solid 3&D wing to back up LeBron. The gamble is Jaxson Hayes as the backup center. Can he just do what Lakers need him to do?

Additionally, the Lakers are counting on an untested 20-year old second year guard Max Christie to backup shooting guard. While the Lakers have a lot of upside to like in their backups, they also are vulnerable to wild cards. Wild cards are potentially game changing factors that could either propel or derail a season: supposed strengths that turn into weaknesses when stressed or vulnerabilities that get taken advantage of when exposed.

On paper, the Los Angeles Lakers have made a series of moves ‘on the margins’ to improve their roster size and depth. Whether that translates to the Lakers winning a championship will depend on these five wild cards.

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1. Health

When both of your two superstars have missed significant parts of the last three seasons due to injuries, health has to be the single most important wild card that could either propel or derail the Lakers’ 2023–24 season.

The Lakers took smart steps this offseason as insurance against LeBron James or Anthony Davis possibly suffering an injury by getting bigger, deeper, younger, and less reliant on their superstars carrying the load. Strategically, the Lakers hope a deep, diverse, and talented roster could prevent the team from having to overly rely on LeBron James and Anthony Davis to the point where they’re overplayed and, as a result, injured.

LeBron and the Lakers have always been reluctant to fully embrace load management as as strategic priority but the time has come for them to consider setting limits of 30 minutes per game on both James and Davis. That doesn’t mean you can’t break the rule to win a specific game or change it in the playoffs. It just means that you want to wean the team from over relying on their superstars and limit superstar minutes to prevent injuries.

Hopefully, embracing load management will be the wild card that enables the Lakers to keep LeBron James and Anthony Davis fresher and injury free during the long regular season and ready to thrive in the playoffs.

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2. Youth

The Lakers’ second biggest wild card is their heavy reliance on youth with 20-year old shooting guard Max Christie and 23-year old center Jaxson Hayes projected as Austin Reaves’ and Anthony Davis’ primary backups.

Those are two major rotation roles that will require leaps in the growth and development of young Max Christie and Jaxson Hayes. While only 20 years old, the Lakers are confident Christie is ready for a role in the rotation. While he’s only in his second year, Max’s game’s already taken a huge leap per his summer league play, showing why the Lakers are justified to have him penciled in the 10-man rotation with which they’ll start this season.

Hayes is a bigger question mark as he was unable to hold a rotation spot in New Orleans despite elite athleticism, talent, and size. Jax realizes this is a great opportunity for him but he will need to focus on protecting the rim. The Lakers believe Hayes could be their center of the future and envision him at some point starting alongside Anthony Davis as the team returns to the two bigs lineups that won the 2020 NBA championship in the bubble.

The Lakers are asking a lot of 20-year old Christy and 23-year old Hayes and will bring them along slowly as key pieces in the rotation. It would be a big wild card for the Lakers if the young Max and Jax can grow into their roles.

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3. Size

Size is another Lakers’ wild card. One of their goals this summer was to get bigger at every position: in the backcourt, on the wings, and even at center where they would like to return to the 2020 championship two-bigs model.

The Lakers added 6′ 11′ Hayes, 6′ 8″ Prince, 6′ 7″ Reddish, 6′ 7″ Lewis, 6′ 6″ Hood-Schifino, and 6′ 2″ Vincent to go with 6′ 10″ Davis, 6′ 9″ James, 6′ 8″ Vanderbilt, 6′ 8″ Hachimura, 6′ 6″ Russell, 6′ 5″ Reaves, and 6′ 5″ Christie. That’s a big lineup with 9 players with wingspans over 7′. What’s missing, though, are the quicker smaller guards like Dennis Schroder who can beat defenders off the dribble offensively but are a size liability defensively.

Strategically, the Lakers have been able to compensate for their negative 3-point differential by outscoring opponents in the paint and at the line despite their glaring lack of size in front and backcourt all season long.
By getting bigger and more athletic, the Lakers are hoping they’ll be able to build even bigger advantages in points-in-the-paint and made free throws. It’s their formula for how to win in the NBA without great 3-point shooting.

Size is a wild card that often gets trumped by speed and quickness. The Lakers are doubling down that getting bigger and longer will help them increase their advantages in points-in-the-paint and made free throws.

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4. Depth

There is no team in the NBA more starpower driven than the Los Angeles Lakers, where superstars and championships have become synonymous. Yet the Lakers opted to add depth rather than starpower this offseason.

For starpower driven teams like the Lakers, depth has usually been filled with over-the-hill veterans on minimum contracts looking for one last hurrah and an opportunity to win a championship ring before they retire. Rather than add a third star, the Lakers spent their limited cap space on adding depth in the form of young, big, long, and athletic players who can not only backup their starters but also grow and develop into starters.

When analysts look at what Rob Pelinka has done in rebuilding the Lakers on the fly, the most astonishing aspect of the accomplishment is how he has surrounded LeBron and AD with nothing but young athletic players. That’s why depth is a wild card that could come back to haunt the Lakers. They not only did not bring in a veteran scorer like Bogdanovic to close games. Instead they invested win-now resources in the future.

Part of the Lakers’ grand strategy is building a team that has a beating and thriving heart of talented young players with promising upsides that is continually replenished. The Lakers’ wild card is inexperienced depth.

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5. Continuity

The good news is the Lakers have finally put together a 13-player roster that is maybe one player away from being a championship caliber squad. The bad news is only 7 of the 13 players were from last season’s roster.

Frankly, the Lakers season-closing finish to make the playoffs much less the conference finals was miraculous and maybe unrepeatable when you consider how little time they had playing together to do what they did. That’s why continuity is still a major wild card with this team. On paper, the Lakers look like a much better and deeper team. They do have five starters and two of five primary backups returning so there’s hope they can gell.

Pelinka has now completed 80% of the job of transforming the Los Angeles Lakers from a lottery team to a championship contender. All that remains is adding a big to the current roster and trading for that last puzzle piece. What’s most astonishing about Pelinka’s makeover is what this deep and talented young roster means in terms of the franchise’s sustainability when LeBron James retires. Lakers are positioned to not miss a beat.

While the Lakers have finally committed to building a sustainable deep roster, their current lack of continuity is potentially the team’s greatest wild card. Hopefully, James and Davis leadership will be able to overcome that.