Three Possible Starting 5s for the Lakers On Opening Night

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Lin/Bryant/Swaggy/Randle/Boozer

This is the complete wildcard that would likely be out there for pure offense.

We know what Lin and Bryant bring to the table, but Swaggy P is the second best scorer on this team outside of Bryant. Playing aside one another who alleviate some of the defensive pressure, ensuring the duo more open looks and possibly more points.

Even in his limited action, Randle is likely one of the best offensive threats we have down low. Aside from his “bully ball” style, he showed more than enough to get fans excited with his ball-handling skills, sending Lakers Nation into Lamar Odom flashbacks. It’s not unreasonable to see Randle as a starter on opening night, but it would take a very quick acclamation for that to occur.

With Boozer and Randle, the Lakers would not be clogging up the paint as both work better facing up toward the basket rather than a back-to-the-basket post-up player. This would allow driving lanes for Lin, who excels at getting to the rim and finishing or dishing to open players.

However, this lineup would be atrocious defensively. The complete lack of size down low would leave them exposed, and the lack of even an average defender on the perimeter would lead to them getting lit up. In the end, this lineup shouldn’t be starting, but could be one seen in times the Lakers are desperate for offense.

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