Coming into the season, there are a lot of question about the Lakers, but one certainty is that this squad will not be very good. While it’s unlikely that equal last season’s futility, they’d definitely be vastly overachieving with a playoff berth.
ESPN released it’s first preseason power ranking prior to training camp, and unsurprisingly, the Lakers came in at 23rd:
"Lakers Haters are advised to enjoy this season, because there’s every chance they’ll reload in free agency sooner rather than later. In the interim, I plan to be mesmerized by what happens when you add Boozer, J-Lin, Ed Davis and Julius Randle to Swaggy P, Nash and a comebacking Kobe."
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The bottom third of the league is about the right place for the Lakers. Those ranked around the Lakers are predominantly all teams that featured in the draft lottery last spring aside from Pacers, who are still reeling from the Paul George injury.
Best case scenario, the Lakers fight for an eighth seed. The veterans who were cast away from their respective teams (Carlos Boozer, Jeremy Lin) could mesh with the youngsters.
The worst case scenario involves the Lakers bottoming out. If the season starts rough, they may eye next year’s draft pick and attempt to fall into the bottom five of the draft.
Either way, this will be another exciting and interesting year in Lakerland. Do you think the Lakers are a playoff team? A bottom five team? Let us know down below!