Yes, it’s a long shot but there’s something insanely karmic and stealthily savvy about the Lakers bringing back two former players who were both awarded championship rings by the team despite missing the playoffs.
The Lakers reportedly were interested in signing Boogie a few weeks ago but wanted to wait to see if Andre Drummond were bought out. While the Lakers are now the favorites to land Drummond, it’s still not a slam dunk. There are also serious questions whether Andre would be a good fit for the Lakers, especially in the playoffs when Anthony Davis will have to play a major share of the minutes at center if LA hopes to repeat as champions.
But aside from the karma of DeMarcus and Avery getting an opportunity to earn the championship rings they were awarded, there are three compelling reasons why they could be the best out-of-the-box options for the Lakers.
1. TEAM CHEMISTRY
Let’s be honest. One of the reasons the Lakers won the NBA championship last year was their strong team chemistry and involving key players in trade deadline discussions could have undermined and damaged that chemistry.
There’s also no question that DeMarcus Cousins and Avery Bradley were valued members of the Lakers’ championship team who would be eagerly and fully welcomed back and help repair any damage that had been done. Contrast that with the potential problems of bringing in an outsider like Andre Drummond or say Lou Williams, who don’t have the history and relationships that Boogie and Bradley have and might cause friction.
While Cousins and Bradley could be invaluable contributors to the Lakers repeating as champs, they would not likely start or dramatically change the team’s rotations but they would clearly strengthen the Lakers’ chemistry.
2. FLOOR SPACING
The proven formula for winning with LeBron has always been to surround him with high percentage, high volume 3-point shooting. Right now, the Lakers rank 25th in 3-point attempts and 22nd in 3-point percentage.
The default strategy to slow down LeBron is for defenders to sag off his teammates and clog the paint to prevent him from attacking the rim. The Lakers need willing shooters who can take and make more 3-point shots. Cousins and Bradley can do that. Drummond can’t. Boogie averaged 33.6% on 4.6 threes in 20.2 minutes while Bradley averaged 42.1% on 3.8 threes in 21.1 minutes. Drummond missed all 8 of the threes he took this year.
The offensive challenge the Lakers will face in this year’s playoffs is going to be winning or limiting the 3-point shooting differential. The Lakers need to take and make more threes than they’re doing now to repeat as champs.
3. OVERALL FIT
Once the Lakers get into the playoffs, Anthony Davis is going to play the five half the time like last year with Morris or Kuzma at the four against most opponents. Bradley can help those lineups. Cousins and Drummond can’t.
The issue then becomes what to do with the time when AD is not playing the five. What the Lakers don’t want to happen is the the team standing around force feeding the ball into the post for an inefficient Drummond to go 1-on-1. That time would be far better utilized by Boogie playing a stretch five and opening up lanes for LeBron and AD to attack the rim or by LeBron, Dennis, Avery, and THT running pick-and-rolls with Montrezl for layups and dunks.
The last thing the Lakers need right now is to add a player who needs the ball to showcase himself to earn a max contract this summer. The Lakers should focus on adding players who enhance the team and how we play.
The Lakers front office essentially gave this roster a vote of confidence with their decision to not make the trade for Lowry. They obviously believe the Lakers have the superstars and supporting cast to win the championship.
While we do need size and better rim protection, there’s a good argument that Cousins could be just as effective in that tole as Drummond and certainly a better fit offensively with his playmaking and shooting. There’s also the issue of expectation which could result in friction that could hurt the Lakers already stressed team chemistry. This may be the time for the Lakers to double down on tweaking rather than revamping how they play.
When you consider the importance of team chemistry, floor spacing, and overall fit, signing Cousins and Bradley and giving them the opportunity to earn another ring to go with the one we gave them last year makes sense. Cousins and Bradley would allow the Lakers to play the same style with AD at center that won the title last year and incorporate this season’s success with Gasol as a stretch five and Harrell as a pick-and-roll finisher.
While there’s something insanely karmic and stealthily savvy about the Lakers bringing back two players who were both awarded championship rings by the team despite missing the playoffs, here’s hoping it will happen.
I spent a couple of hours thinking about Andre Drummond in preparation for writing an article about how he would fit on or work for the Lakers before coming to the inevitable conclusion that he wouldn’t be a good fit or work well. In fact, I’m actually worried that he could end up being a bust that damages team chemistry and focuses Vogel’s attention away from taking advantage of Gasol stretching defenses to open up lanes for LeBron and AD to attack the rim or from LeBron et al running pick-and-rolls to get dunks and layups for Trezz.
The problems start with the fact that our best lineups for the playoffs are going to be Anthony Davis at the five with Morris at the four, although I also think we should give Kuzma a chance to be the four too in certain matchups. That’s going to be the lineup that eats up 50% of the minutes and closes games against most opponents like it did last year. Whomever we bring in as a center is not going to change that, whether it’s Drummond or Cousins. AD is the shot blocker and rim protector that makes that scheme work. Drummond or Cousins would just be played off the floor defensively like McGee or Howard because they can’t switch and rotate and defend the perimeter. Oddly, I do think there will be situations where Trezz can function defensively in the AD small ball lineup. We’ve seen glimpse of that and he is mobile and athletic enough to pull it off.
That leaves the other half of the game where AD is not the center. I don’t want to see that half of the game turn into force feeding Drummond in the post, where he is an inefficient black hole, while everybody else stands around. Not when you have LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the team. Give me Boogie firing away from deep 5 times a game to stretch the defense or LeBron et al running pick-and-rolls to get Trezz going down hill for dunks and layups. Both of those are better offensive schemes for us than an inefficient back-to-the-basket low post scorer looking to rack up points to get a max contract from another team when he knows the Laker can’t give him that.
Bottom line, time for Boogie and Bradley to earn the ring we gave them for last year as well as another for this year. That’s what I’m hoping for. Of course, I expect the Lakers to sign Drummond and change how we play entirely, which only adds to my frustration over their doing nothing at the trade deadline.
Well obviously anyone who’s not a “volume” 3 point chucker wouldn’t fit in your schemes. Clearly the best option is someone just taking a bunch of 3’s, regardless of percentage or efficiency. No doubt better options than a solid rim protector who’s a walking double-double regardless of any plays run for him. But hell, this is the Lakers, why not all 3?
First, you can’t make them unless you take them and for the most part, you can’t stay on the floor in the NBA if you take a lot of threes but shoot a low percentage. Well, unless you’re Russell Westbrook. If you look at the top ten players in 3PA, you’ll not they all shoot above league average.
While I think a volume 3-point shooter is important, it’s partly that you can’t lose the 3-point war and win most games, it’s also about fitting with LeBron and AD. Having a center who’s willing and able to take and make a high volume of threes has always been part of how you win with LeBron James. Having everybody stand around while you pass the ball to Andre Drummond to score in the low post has not been part of the James winning strategy.
I do understand his rebounding and low post scoring can help but he’s also vulnerable to being played off the court just like JaVale and Dwight were last year. And he’s not the same level of rim protector they were.