We’re approaching the start of the 2021-22 NBA Season. Opening night is October 19.
The Lakers will open up at home against Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors.
And there’s a lot of anticipation heading into this NBA season. There have been several moves made, the biggest one being the trade they made with the Wizards to acquire Russell Westbrook for Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Kyle Kuzma.
This is a solid move for the Lakers, as Westbrook is coming off yet another year where he averaged a triple-double. Some have said that the deal gives the team a type of energy that they haven’t had since the days of Kobe Bryant.
In addition to Westbrook, Los Angeles brought in Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Trevor Ariza, Wayne Ellington, Rajon Rondo, and Kent Bazemore on one-year deals, and signed Kendrick Nunn to a two-year contract with $10 million. They also signed Malik Monk.
The Lakers have loaded up and have proven their desire to win another title. They now have Westbrook, Lebron James, and Anthony Davis in the same starting lineup.
On paper, a lot of these moves may seem really good, as many of the players they brought in are still quite serviceable. But will it be enough to compete for a championship? Will they be able to stay away from the play-in tournament and get a top seed in the playoffs, and will the aging veterans’ bodies hold up?
We’ll start by breaking down some of the one-year deals. Rondo and Howard are both former Lakers that were part of the 2019-20 championship team. Both are solid players with gas left in the tank. The question is can they stay healthy?
That’s the question for a lot of the aging players they brought in. It’s even something to consider with Lebron, though he proves the doubters wrong time and again.
With that many players over 30 years old, the question isn’t necessarily whether or not they can still play. Melo has proven he’s still fully capable of playing at this level. He shot 40.9 percent from beyond the arc.
Ariza is still a solid shooter, and won a ring with Kobe back in 2009. He’s still averaging 10-15 points per game. Ellington is also quite a capable shooter. He’s shot 38.2 percent from three-point range and shot 42.2 percent from downtown last year.
If all goes according to plan, then the Lakers have really upped their offensive game. Most of it last year was coming from Lebron and AD, and a guy like Munn could help produce an uptick in offensive categories.
Then of course, we have the Westbrook trade. Russ is one of the best playmakers in the league. He was a major factor in the Wizards making a run to the playoffs last year. Westbrook does tend to struggle in postseason play, however.
It’s also worth examining the morale in the Lakers locker room after this deal. Both Lebron and Russ are two guys who always want the ball. If they don’t want to pass to each other, let alone, the other guys on the team, tensions could mount.
I could see the Lakers season going one of two ways. Either Westbrook and Lebron overcome any potential tension, guys like Melo, Rondo, and Howard stay healthy, and the Lakers end up rolling into the playoffs with one of the best records in the league, or tensions mount, the veterans can’t stay healthy, and they can’t avoid the play-in tournament.
Time will tell. This is a really good team on paper. But games are never won on paper. It should be an exciting season.
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