For a team that needs practices and superstars who need a chance to rest and recover, the All-Star break is Lakers’ last chance to make adjustments for the 24-game stretch run that starts vs. the Clippers February 25th.
If the Lakers have any hopes of transforming what has been a dismal season into a miraculous comeback in the playoffs, then they need to consider major strategic moves to transform the team over the remaining 24 games. The good news is there are major moves on and off the court the Lakers can make to become a much better team. The bad news is there isn’t much time to act and the Lakers have never been an organization to react with urgency.
Here are five strategic moves the Lakers should consider during the All-Star break to optimize their chances of winning 18 of their 24 remaining games to hopefully finish 46–37, which would give them a good shot at the #6 seed.
1. Consider Firing Frank Vogel and Making Phil Handy Interim Coach
Timing is everything when it comes to changing coaches. The last thing the Lakers need to start this offseason is a lengthy coaching search that delays and derails the team’s plans to rebuild their roster to championship level.
There’s no scenario where Frank Vogel is anything but a lame duck coach when it comes to the Lakers. That’s why the smart move by the Lakers is to fire Vogel after Wednesday’s game and make Phil Handy the interim coach. Promoting Handy would give the Lakers the opportunity to test drive him for the rest of the season and open the door for the Lakers to rethink what’s important and how best to utilize the players they have on the roster to win.
The Lakers as a team need to use the rest of this season to decide exactly what kind of team they want to build, specifically whether they want to chase a third superstar like Dame this summer or better starters and bench. The Lakers also need their next head coach to share a vision of basketball that embraces analytics and the importance of 3-point shooting and versatility when building a roster or constructing lineups and rotations.
Changing coaches now will enable the Lakers to use the rest of the season and the performance under Handy to be in the best position to resolve the coaching issue by end of season so they can focus on upgrading their roster.
2. Experiment with Starting Lineups Built Around LeBron and AD
After trading for Westbrook, the Lakers learned building winning lineups around three ball dominant superstars is not easy. Going forward, they need to experiment with starting lineups built around LeBron and AD.
The Lakers have struggled all season long to build lineups with all three superstars. The problem has been it was impossible to fit the elite 3-point shooting and perimeter defense the team needed in just two other starters. Building starting and closing lineups around just superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis becomes much easier because there are now three starters from which to get the needed shooting and defense.
For example, a Lakers’ starting lineup of Malik Monk, Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Stanley Johnson, and Anthony Davis would be able to shoot the three and play solid defense. That’s a lineup the Lakers should test. Logistically, the Lakers could also tailor their starting and closing lineups based on the matchups against different opponents. They could even have big lineups with Howard starting at the five against certain NBA teams.
Strategically, the Lakers need to experiment with lineups built around James and Davis and without Westbrook so the team will not start every game by spotting the other team with an early double digit lead.
3. Experiment with Russell Westbrook off the Bench as Sixth Man
The flip side of experimenting with two superstar starting lineups is the Lakers will get an opportunity to have Russ be their 6th man catalyst coming off the bench with Melo to wreak havoc against team’s second units.
Not unexpectedly, Russ’ numbers when playing without LeBron and AD are positive whereas his numbers with James and/or Davis have been negative. What’s great about Westbrook as a 6th man role is it allows Russ be Russ. Westbrook surrounded by shooters torching other teams’ second units could be a big part of the Lakers matchup strategy the rest of the year. Imagine Russell with elite 3-point shooters like Melo, Monk, and Ellington.
Nor am I saying Russell Westbrook never starts or closes a game. What I’m saying is the Lakers’ major problem all season long, partly due to injuries and Covid and partly due to poorly conceived and ineffective lineups. This is why the Lakers may need to change head coaches for change to work. Frank Vogel is likely not the best choice as coach to experiment with two superstar lineups without Russ and single superstar lineups with Russ.
The Lakers need to find the optimum situation where Westbrook can have the biggest impact for the Lakers. Part of that solution may be lineups with Russ as the lone superstar surrounded by multiple elite 3-point shooters.
4. Ramp Up Playing Time and Responsibilities for Young Players
After standing pat at the trade deadline, the Lakers need to ramp up the playing time and role responsibilities of talented high-performing young players like Talen Horton-Tucker, Malik Monk, and Austin Reaves.
If the Lakers are going to have any chance of surprising teams and winning in the playoffs, they will need to count on even bigger contributions from this trio of young players, which means giving them more minutes and roles. While the Lakers will seek to bolster their roster with more size and defense from the buyout market, they should give Malik Monk and Austin Reaves starter and closer minutes to accelerate their development.
Beside Monk, Reaves, and Horton-Tucker, the Lakers should also give more minutes to Stanley Johnson in certain matchups and hopefully to Kendrick Nunn when he recovers from his lingering knee injury and is ready to play. Making sure the team’s younger players get minutes and roles to grow and become better is a strategic goal for the rest of the regular season. The Lakers need young players to grow their value as players and trading chips.
Ramping up the playing time and roles for Monk, Reaves, Horton-Tucker, Johnson, and Nunn is one way the Lakers can become a better team over the last 24 games of the regular season and peak heading into the playoffs.
5. Offer Starting Roles to Recruit Players from Buyout Market
With the Lakers not improving themselves at the trade deadline, there will be pressure on Rob Pelinka to find upgrades via the buyout market, which could prove difficult as the Lakers are no longer among the favorites to win.
The one big advantage the Lakers may have over other NBA teams is they are able to offer a point guard like Goran Dragic or shooting guard like Gary Harris guaranteed starting roles the rest of the regular season and playoffs. Buyout free agents who will be looking for ways to impress teams and land a big new contracts could feel playing with LeBron James and Anthony Davis and starting for the Los Angeles Lakers was gold for their brand.
We know the Lakers successfully used this same exact strategy last season to entice Andre Drummond to sign with the Lakers after being bought out. Unfortunately, they’ll need to be careful not to make that mistake this time. Landing Dragic and/or Harris as starters would certainly be a long shot since both are rumored to be leaning towards the Mavs and Nuggets but an opportunity to showcase their game on the Lakers could be irresistible.
The Lakers should be aggressive in promising top buyout candidates like Goran Dragic and Gary Harris guaranteed starting roles and minutes to entice them to sign with the Lakers as free agents for the rest of the season.
I predict Lakers won’t do 1, 2 or 3 even though they should but will do 4 and 5. Problem is 2, 3, 4, and 5 all depend on having a coach who isn’t biased when it comes to certain players.
#1 – Not a Lakers move, doubt it happens, and no telling if Phil has what it takes to be a lead man.
#2 – Hasn’t every starting lineup been an experiment around Bron and AD?
#3 – May as well tell him to stay home at that point.
#4 – Seems like they’re already doing this.
#5 – They’ll try but there’ll be actual contenders not in this state of disarray also offering.
The bottom line is Jokic and some dudes are in the thick of it. Lebron, AD, and a buncha nobodies aren’t. I think the aging player supermax deals have proven disastrous and look to the owners to address that in the next labor battle.
What Lakers don’t want is to be stuck searching for a new head coach at the start of the summer while everybody else is making trades and signing free agents. That’s why they need to start the process now to be done by end of the season. Otherwise, we’ll be screwed this summer.