Lakerholics

It’s a tiny 3-game sample size early in the season but watching Anthony Davis dominating in the post like Shaquille O’Neal has hopeful Lakers fans wondering if rookie coach Darvin Ham has figured out how to unlock AD.

Davis sudden breakout play couldn’t have come at a better time for the Lakers as early injuries, poor shooting, and a tough schedule put them in a 2–10 hole that had the front office questioning if the season could be saved.
Two injury-plagued losing years fueled by self-inflicted mistakes had paralyzed the Lakers’ front office with some wanting to move forward with a mega trade and others to save the picks for a major rebuild next summer.

With a 3-game win streak, the 5–10 Lakers have 5 games left — Suns, Spurs, and Spurs on the road and the Pacers and Blazers at home — of the 20 games Pelinka said he would give the team before any trade decisions. 
Could the Lakers do the impossible, upset the Suns tomorrow night in Phoenix, trounce the Spurs twice in San Antonio, and finally come home to Los Angeles to beat the Pacers and Blazers and finish November 10–10?

The 10–6 Suns have struggled recently going just 5–5 over their last 10 games although they are 8–1 at home, where they will play the Lakers tomorrow night. It’s still unknown whether LeBron will play tomorrow.
The Lakers and Anthony Davis will have an opportunity to see how their new winning formula works when they’re playing an elite team like the Phoenix Suns with an elite quality starting center like Deandre Ayton.

The Lakers have a legitimate opportunity to climb out of the early 2–10 hole they dug themselves because Anthony Davis was able to take the baton from an injured LeBron James and dominate like Shaquille O’Neal.

---

What Are Differences Between ‘Shaq AD’ and ‘Bubble AD?’

So how does the Shaquille O’Neal version of Anthony Davis that we’ve seen the last three games compare with the Bubble version of Anthony Davis that along with LeBron James earned the Lakers 18th NBA championship?

While it’s only been three games, the eye test suggests Shaq AD could be better for the Lakers than Bubble AD as he appears to be taking more shots at the rim and fewer long twos and threes, which is far more efficient.
A quick look at the stats confirms during the last three games that Davis is shooting 73.5% of his shots within 5 feet of the rim compared to just 55% during the 2019–20 regular season and 33% during 2019–20 playoffs.

By focusing his offense more on attacking the paint and rim and less on taking long midrange twos and threes, Anthony Davis has dramatically changed his game and made himself a more dangerous low post threat.
That’s why comparing Anthony Davis’ new game to the dominant game of former Lakers’ center Shaquille O’Neal, who basically took half of his 20 shots within 5 feet and half within 9 feet of the rim, makes sense.

During the three-game stretch, Anthony Davis has averaged 35.0 points, 17.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.3 steals, 1.7 blocks in 31.8 minutes per game. That represents his best three game stretch wearing purple and gold. Because he’s taking a higher percentage of his shots closer to the basket, Davis was able to hit 61.7% of his field goals during the three games and attack the offensive backboards to average 5 offensive boards per game.

While it’s only been three games, it does appear the Darvin Ham has figured out how to unlock Anthony Davis by having him play more like Shaquille O’Neal and take more shots at the rim than the perimeter.

---

(2019–20 Season) 26.1/9.3/3.2 shooting 50.3%/33.3%/84.6% on 17.1/3.5/8.5
(2010–20 Playoffs) 27.7/9.7/3.5 shooting 57.1%/38.3%/83.2% on 17.1/2.2/8.4

(2022–23 Season) 25.6/12.0/2.4 shooting 55.4%/21.1%/81.4% on 17.8/1.4/6.9
(Last 3 Games) 35.0/17.3/2.0 shooting 61.7%/0.0%/91.2% on 20.0/1.0/11.3

---

What Happens When LeBron James Returns From Injury?

It’s been a long time coming because of injuries and poorly constructed rosters but it finally looks like Anthony Davis is ready to take the baton from LeBron James as the face and alpha superstar of the Lakers.

Like the transitions of many great sports figures, Davis’ ascension to the throne as the Lakers lead superstar was facilitated by untimely groin and foot injuries to LeBron James that opened the door for AD to dominate.
The big question for Darvin Ham and the Lakers is now how to re-integrate LeBron James into the rotation without taking away the critical touches and possessions that have allowed Anthony Davis to dominant in the paint.

Until the last three games, Anthony Davis averaged 17.8 field goal attempts per game compared to LeBron James’ 21.9 field goal attempts per game. In those three games, AD raised his total shot attempts to 20.0 per game. 
Lonnie Walker IV and Austin Reaves also got additional shot attempts due to James being out with injuries. The key strategy for the Lakers going forward may be for LeBron to return as more of a facilitator than scorer.

In many ways, shifting the focus of the Lakers’ offense from LeBron James to Anthony Davis has been the team’s goal since winning their 18th NBA championship in the bubble in 2020 so it’s great he has this opportunity. 
Fortunately for the Lakers, LeBron James has always envisioned Anthony Davis taking over the baton from him so it’s likely he’ll appreciate the opportunity to step back, play fewer minutes, and let AD dominate.

The Lakers need to make sure re-integrating LeBron James back into their rotation will not take away from the monster impact that Anthony Davis playing like Shaquille O’Neal could have on the Lakers playoff hopes.

---

Can Shaq Version of Anthony Davis Lead Lakers to Championship?

Lakers’ management and fans losing faith that Anthony Davis would take the baton from LeBron James as the team’s next transcendent superstar player was obviously a way-too-early knee-jerk reaction to a tough start.

And while three games is not a fair sample size, the results clearly show that Anthony Davis can be as dominant as any superstar in the league. Most pundits have already restored him to his former top-five NBA player status.
The timing of Davis sudden takeover of the team could not be better for the Lakers and LeBron James, who now can take whatever time he needs to heal his groin and foot and hopefully go on cruise control until playoffs.

With Father Time relentlessly undercutting James’ health and athleticism, now is the ideal time for the Lakers to shift focus of their offense to AD with LeBron focusing more on playmaking and defense than scoring.
Just a side note but you have to wonder whether LeBron might resist a role because of how close he is to breaking Kareem’s scoring record. There are many smart reasons for the Lakers to scale LeBron back in regular season.

While Anthony Davis still has to prove he can stay on the court, he’s finally looking like the top-five player he used to be before the last two frustrating injury-filled years. Tomorrow night against Ayton will be a big test.
Anthony Davis knows he’s had a huge physical edge over his opponents in the last three games. Deandre Ayton and the Suns will be as good a quick test on whether Shaq AD is good enough to lead the Lakers to victory.

Anthony Davis has the talent to take the baton from LeBron James and become the team’s go-to player. If Davis can dominate Deandre Ayton tomorrow night, he may be ready to lead Lakers to a championship.

The Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets are both broken teams with toxic superstars. For the Lakers, it’s Russell Westbrook who’s a terrible fit. For the Nets, it’s Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons who’ve become pariahs.

As crazy as it might initially seem, the best possible solution for the Lakers and Nets could be to help each other by swapping their problem superstars. Neither is going to be able to make a better trade with any other NBA team.
The proposed trade involves the Los Angeles Lakers trading Russell Westbrook plus Patrick Beverley and Kendrick Nunn to the Brooklyn Nets for Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons in straight deal without any draft picks.

How ironic that the two franchises with the superstar big threes and grand hopes of meeting in the NBA Finals are now viewing each other as possible trading partners to extract them from their self-inflicted trading wounds. Could the reunion of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant be the fresh start solution the Nets need? Could adding Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons to LeBron James and Anthony Davis transform the Lakers into contenders?

Let’s take a closer look at why the Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets should be willing to make the proposed trade and how the trade would impact both teams’ prospects both in the short term and long term.

---

Why the Los Angeles Lakers Should Make the Trade

The Lakers make this trade because it lets them to have their cake and eat it too. The trade not only transform the Lakers into legitimate championship contenders but it also allows them to keep both of their first round picks.

The opportunity to trade Westbrook, Beverley, and Nunn for a toxic Irving and toxic Simmons could be another lethal misfire like trading for Russell Westbrook or a case of the lucky Lakers making lemonade out of lemons.
But the opportunity to acquire two players with superstar talent could be an irresistible opportunity for the Lakers, especially since the trade would enable them to keep both their 2027 and 2029 first round draft picks.

Trading for two troubled superstars like Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons would be an incredibly risky gamble by a Lakers’ front office whose poor roster construction has resulted in two injury and loss filled seasons.
But the reward of not having to give up their 2027 and 2029 first round picks is the grease that makes the trade worth the huge risk for the Lakers and is worth taking on toxic Irving for a year and troubled Simmons for 3 years.

The Lakers would be gambling that adding Irving’s scoring and shooting and Simmons’ size, playmaking, and defense would be a critical first step to transform the current squad into a legitimate championship contender.
The wild cards that make such a trade even conceivable from the Lakers’ point of view is Irving’s history with James and the team’s close alliance with the Klutch Sports Group, agents for James, Davis, and Simmons.

The Lakers rarely hesitate when given an opportunity to trade for superstar talent. The opportunity to acquire Irving and Simmons for Westbrook and filler without including any picks would be one the Lakers could not resist.

---

Why the Brooklyn Nets Should Make the Trade

The Brooklyn Nets make this trade to replace two players in Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons whose personal toxic problems have derailed the team’s season and threatened its relationship with superstar Kevin Durant.

For the Brooklyn Nets, this trade is about salvaging their relationship with mega superstar Kevin Durant and making moves to stabilize the roster and give KD trust and confidence the franchise is moving in the right direction.
The first step in doing that is to move Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons. Irving burned his bridges in Brooklyn with his support of an anti-Semitic film and Simmons with his mental inability to shoot while on the court.

Other than the Lakers, there may not be any NBA teams willing to trade Kyrie Irving or Ben Simmons considering their toxic baggage. Irving is on an expiring contract but Simmons has 3-years and $113 million left.
What’s fascinating is there’s a case to be made that Westbrook playing alongside Durant could be a good fit on the Nets, who will need a starting point guard after trading both Irving and Simmons to the Lakers.

Westbrook is no longer a major negative factor when he pays thanks to the intervention of Lakers rookie head coach Darvin Ham, who convinced Russ to come off the bench, where he’s played like the 6th Man of the Year.
A possible reunion of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant could be the exact type of landscape change the Brooklyn Nets need. Westbrook’s relentless energy would be a welcome change from Irving and Simmons.

The Nets and Kevin Durant need a fresh start and the best way to do that would be to trade the toxic Irving and dump the broken Simmons and his 3 years and $113 million on the Lakers for Westbrook, Beverley, and Nunn.

---

Pelinka sagely preaches patience as the proscribed best case cure for the disastrous reckless actions last offseason that led to what could easily be the worst season in the modern history of the Los Angeles Lakers. 

But Pelinka now has reason to be patient, buoyed by Sunday night’s big win behind Anthony Davis, four days off to integrate now healthy Dennis Schröder and Thomas Bryant, and a favorable schedule the next 7 games.
We’ve learned every ‘if’ is a big ‘if’ with the Lakers but if Davis can continue to play at a high level and James, Schröder, and Bryant are healthy and ready to play, the Lakers could win 6 of next 7 and end November 9–11. 

Seeing the Lakers turn their early season around would be certainly be welcome news for the Lakers’ front office that’s been under siege for their questionable roster construction and poor personnel decision making. 
The improvement should allay any fears the Lakers’ front office may have had as to whether the current roster, including superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, was worth investing two very valuable draft picks.

What’s known for sure is the Lakers’ current roster needs more size and better shooting to be a legitimate championship contender. The bigger question is can this front office trade for the ‘right’ players this time? 
The options of tanking this season to accumulate cap space and draft picks to fuel a monster makeover next summer or trading LeBron James and/or Anthony Davis and rebuilding were always just click-bait pipe dreams.

Bottom line, the Los Angeles Lakers have no viable options other than to trade Russell Westbrook and their 2027 and 2029 first round draft picks. Here are five key reasons why the Lakers ultimately make the big trade:

---

1. Reassure Fan Base Lakers Always Play to Win the Championship

Jeanie Buss is proud to say that the Lakers never tank and the single biggest reason the Lakers need to trade Russ and their two picks is to reassure their fanbase they always play to win the championship and will never tank.

---

2. Strengthen Image of Lakers As Home for NBA’s Greatest Superstars 

Jeanie also wants the Lakers to be where great NBA superstars want to go and going all-in and trading Russ and the picks to help LeBron is exactly the move that will make future superstars want to wear purple and gold.

---

3. Keep Promises to LeBron James to Trade Picks to Upgrade Roster

The Lakers know keeping their promise to LeBron to trade the picks has to be done. Not keeping that promise would be lethal to their relationship. That’s why the Lakers have no choice but to trade Russ and the picks.

---

4. Solidify Mutually Beneficial Relationship with Klutch Sports

The Los Angeles Lakers and Klutch Sports Group have built a powerful alliance that has been mutually beneficial to both organizations. Lakers need to trade Russ and picks to solidify their relationship with Klutch.

---

5. Ensure Pelicans Don’t Swap Picks to Draft Victor Wembanyama

The Lakers biggest fear if they do not trade Russ and the picks to get better is that they may end up so deep in the lottery that they might end up giving Victor Wembanyama as an additional piece in the Anthony Davis trade.

The struggling Los Angeles Lakers received a nice surprise last night as embattled superstar Anthony Davis, playing without injured LeBron James, had what could be his best regular season game ever in purple and gold. 

Questionable due to a non-Covid related illness until game time, Davis finally gave the doubting Lakers’ front office and fans a tantalizing glimpse of what they could expect from him as the star in a post LeBron James NBA world.
Davis scored 37 points, shot 15–25 from the field with 23 of 25 shots in the paint, and 7 of 7 from the line. He grabbed 18 rebounds including 10 on the offensive glass, dished out 2 assists, and only turned the ball over 1 time. 

Despite being sick and having back spasms, Anthony told his rookie head coach Darvin Ham and his teammates that he had their backs and went out and dominated play and inspired his teammates to join him in a big win.
While the win elevated the Lakers’ record to 3–10, it also ended the team’s second five-game losing streak this season and gave them a boost as they headed into a perfectly timed four-day offs with their next game on Friday.

Those four days off will be critical for LeBron James to allow his sore foot to recover and for Dennis Schroder and Thomas Bryant, both of whom may be recovered from thumb surgeries and be ready to play in Friday’s game.
Despite the intense pressure on Pelinka to make a trade quickly to save the season before the Lakers dig a hole too deep to climb out of, Rob has not at this point re-engaged any of the team’s major prospective trade partners.

While it’s obvious that a 3–10 record doesn’t meet the Lakers’ standard of a roster worthy of investing two possibly unprotected first round draft picks, Pelinka and the Lakers have not entirely ruled out making a mega trade.
Last night’s win and Anthony Davis’ great performance should give the Lakers’ front office confidence that the primary reason behind the team’s slow start was a poorly built roster lacking sufficient size and shooting.

Many of the doubts and questions about Anthony Davis’ heart or fire or willingness to do what he needs to do for the Lakers to win were answered definitively in last night’s ‘must win’ game with LeBron James unavailable.
Anthony Davis may never be the super alpha star that MJ, Kobe, and, at times, LeBron were but he also is a true unicorn in that he is a generational player who can anchor a championship caliber offense and defense.

It’s ironic that LeBron’s slow start and injury provided Anthony Davis with this two-game window where he had no choice but to take the baton from LeBron and accept the burden of leading the Lakers, becoming their alpha.
There cannot be a more difficult superstar to take the baton from than LeBron James and that’s been part of the problem Anthony Davis has had since the Lakers traded for him. How do you take the baton from LeBron?

The past two years, LeBron has actually been trying to get Anthony to exert himself and aggressively become the team’s alpha player. But injuries and struggles to win have resulted in LeBron becoming even more dominant. What we saw last night was the perfect model for Anthony Davis going forward. LeBron can’t give you the baton. You have to take it, which means playing every game with the full intention to do what you did last night.

The Lakers’ schedule for the 7 games left in November is easier than the the first 13 games of the year. The Lakers opponents are the Pistons, Spurs, Suns, Spurs, Spurs, Pacers, Blazers. Lakers should be able to go 6–1.
That would give them a 9–11 record through the end of November, solid proof this roster is not only worthy of investing two first round picks but also fully capable of becoming a legitimate championship contender.

While it’s only one game, Anthony Davis has give the Lakers a tantalizing glimpse of the player he could be without LeBron James that should restore the team’s confidence in him as the player around whom they should build.

In a surprise move, the Lakers front office has reportedly challenged rookie coach Darvin Ham and superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis to show in through November they’re worth spending two draft picks on.

Threatening not to trade their 2027 or 2029 first round picks unless the team suddenly starts to play better and win games is a stupid move by an embattled Lakers’ front office that appears to question its own superstars. Have Rob Pelinka and the Lakers’ front office lost faith that James and Davis can win another NBA championship? We’re only 12 games into the season but LeBron is showing his age and AD has not been Bubble AD.

The NBA has ironically been running a marketing commercial built around the idea of LeBron James battling Father Time, played by Jason Momoa, while the true life version of this same battle has been happening real time. Though it’s only been 12 games and James has been hampered by minor foot and groin injuries, most observers would say Father Time is winning. Right now, LeBron has the worst plus/minus on the entire Lakers’ roster.

Meanwhile, Anthony Davis has lost confidence in his outside shot, which has turned what used to be one of the league’s most dangerous three-level scorers into a one-level scorer limited now mostly to points in the paint.
Davis has bulked up and lost some of the quickness and explosiveness from his Pelican days as the Lakers played him more and more at center rather than his preferred power forward position where he can roam free more.

We don’t knw how serious the Lakers’ concerns about James and Davis are but how they and the team play the rest of this month could dramatically change what the team decides to do with Westbrook and their two picks.

---

1. What Happens If the Lakers Suddenly Show They Can Win?

If LeBron starts playing like a Bionic Man, Anthony Davis like Bubble AD, and the team like they could be great if they had more size and shooting, the Lakers will trade Westbrook and the two picks to give the team a shot.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ best trade option for Russell Westbrook and two unprotected picks is a three-way trade with the Indiana Pacers and the Charlotte Hornets to acquire Terry Rozier, Myles Turner, and Buddy Hield. The goal of the trade is for the Lakers to acquire three new starters in Rozier, Turner, and Hield to give the Lakers starting lineup greater size and 3-point shooting and elevate them to a legitimate championship contender.

The Lakers need to be willing to give up unprotected 2027 and 2029 first round draft picks to motivate the Pacers to complete this trade but should understand that those picks are the gold standard of first round picks. There’s a good chance those post LeBron James picks could be top-five picks by 2027 and 2029 just as the Lakers’ post Kobe Bryant picks turned out to be top-five picks for Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and Julius Randle.

Since the Lakers are willing to give up both picks unprotected, they should demand the Pacers give them back a protected first round pick in return, like the 2025 first round pick they received from the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Lakers need that pick to sweeten a trade of Patrick Beverley and Kendrick Nunn for the Hornets’ Terry Rozier. While Charlotte will save $70 million in the trade, it’ll still take a first round pick to close the deal.

If the Lakers can play better and win games and James and Davis can show they’re not washed up versions of themselves but just superstars who need a better supporting cast, the Lakers will acquiesce and trade the picks.

---

2. What’ Happens If James & Davis Lakers Continue to Lose?

If James, Davis, and the Lakers cannot show the front office that the roster is just a trade short from being a contender, then expect the Lakers to keep Russ and the picks and opt instead for a monster makeover this summer.

We’ve always known members of the Lakers’ front office were against trading the two first round picks unless it made them legit contenders. Their preference was sacrifice this year to rebuild strong next summer.
If they can’t make a trade to make this team a legitimate contender, we should save the picks for next summer, when we could have over $35 million in open cap space and three first round picks to sweeten trades.

That all sounds wonderful except for two things. First, how do you get LeBron at 38-years old to buy in to sacrificing one of what could be the last two or three years of his career after promising you’d trade the picks? Bottom line, I don’t see how the Lakers can refuse to make a trade to save this season. After all, Rob Pelinka essentially promised LeBron James he would trade the two picks to improve their size and shooting.

Second, how do you even use the draft picks in a trade because the only players under contract whom you can trade besides LeBron James and Anthony Davis are Max Christie ($1.7M) and Damian Jones ($2.6M).
That’s when the epiphany usually happens and you realize that what the Lakers are trying to setup next summer is $35 million in cap space and a blockbuster trade involving James or Davis and three first round picks.

While sacrificing this season and trading one of their superstars might be a risky gamble, the Lakers have never been a franchise afraid to shoot for the moon when it came to winning, including pulling off a monster makeover.

---

3. Where Does This Leave Lakers At End of November?

Pelinka’s decision to wait 20 games before deciding what to do with Russ and their two picks has now morphed into waiting to see whether the team can play well enough to end of November to justify investing two picks.

There is an obvious divide in the Lakers’ front office over what the team’s strategy should be as they approach LeBron James eventual retirement and there’s an argument the Lakers should be proactive about the transition. Rather than going all in to win right now, the Lakers should sacrifice this season in order to accumulate a war chest of cap space and draft assets to pull off a monster makeover to a championship favorite this summer.

Pelinka made a huge mistake by announcing the decision to trade the team’s two first round picks was so critical to the franchise future that every one of the front office stakeholders had to unanimously agree to any trade.
That’s what happened before the start of camp when one or more of Rob Pelinka; Jeanie, Joey, and Jesse Buss; and Kurt and Linda Rambis would not agree that Myles Turner and Buddy Hield were worth the two picks.

In the air also is how the Lakers suddenly questioning LeBron James’ and Anthony Davis’ ability to win another championship could end up fatally damaging the strong alliance between the Lakers and Klutch Sports.
Jeanie promised LeBron will be respected like Kobe, and Rob pledged to be the guardian of James’ legacy and promised they were willing to trade the two first round draft picks to make the Lakers legitimate contenders.

Bottom line, regardless of how the team plays the rest of this month, the Lakers are not going to sacrifice this season. That is just not how the they have ever operated and is not something Jeanie is willing to do to the fans. Giving up on a season and breaking promises to your superstar would be a betrayal of the fans, which is the final nail in the coffin of the crazy idea of sacrificing this season for a mythical monster makeover next summer.

In the end, the Los Angeles Lakers have no choice but to do what they can to improve this team. They will pick up the phone and call the Indiana Pacers and make the long overdue trade for Myles Turner and Buddy Hield.