LSL Round Table: Bold Predictions For The Lakers This Season

To the delight of fans across the globe, the preseason has finally come to an end. This signals one thing: from now on, every game counts.

The NBA season is finally upon us and predictions for the season are beginning to ramp up. Today, the LSL crew discusses our bold predictions for the Lakers 2015-16 Campaign.

Editor, Eric Yee

Kobe Bryant will retire before the season’s end.

Torn Achilles, eight months. Fractured knee, eight months. Torn rotator cuff, seven months.

In the past three NBA seasons, the once invincible Kobe Bryant has suffered three season ending injuries. Throughout his career, Bryant was always hurt — broken fingers, sprained shoulders and ankles, you name it — but he was still able to play through the pain and get work done.

Approaching his 20th NBA season, it appears that Father Time has finally caught up with Bryant, but instead of greeting him like an old friend, Kobe insists on going out on his own terms.

As a die hard Kobe fan, it is difficult to say this, but all signs point to the Black Mamba announcing his retirement before the close of the 2015-16 NBA Season. Ironically, the NBA put out a hype video prior to the 2013-14 season which predicted just that.

Not even a game into the regular season, and Kobe has sustained another leg injury. Said injury has kept him sidelined the last few preseason games and could keep him out of the Season Opener.

Despite Bryant being able to go through a full practice in recent days, reportedly stealing the spot light, it seems that it’s only a matter of time until the injuries catch up with him.

Metta said an unnamed teammate started trash talking to Kobe during Sunday's practice, and that it fired him up. https://t.co/Os55sD0BaC
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) October 25, 2015

Bryant has shouldered the load that is the Lakers for nearly half of his life, so it’s only fitting that a shoulder injury pains him in what may ultimately be his last season.

With all of this in mind, this is one prediction we hope doesn’t come true.

Staff Writer, Justin Haines

The Lakers will be represented on the All-NBA Rookie Team, but not by D’Angelo Russell.

The Lakers took Russell with the second pick in the draft because they believe he can be the future of the organization. He’s filled with potential and could become the face of the franchise one day, but today is not that day. Currently, he’s not even the best young player on this team.

Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson are both better than him so far this year, especially with Clarkson playing for a new contract. The surprise is that the other rookies might fare better.

Through the preseason, Marcelo Huertas, Anthony Brown and Larry Nance Jr. all had big moments. Huertas certainly outplayed Russell at times. Brown has proved himself worthy of a starting spot, potentially over Russell. And who can forget the hugely entertaining dunks provided by Nance Jr.

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Pre-draft Russell was compared to James Harden quite a bit. Like Harden, it will take him a few years to develop into a force in the NBA. Translation: He won’t make a big impact in his rookie year.

It feels like a good bet that at least one of those guys will get All-NBA Rookie recognition, Russell doesn’t feel as safe.

Perhaps we’ll see Huertas as a first team guard, with Brown or Nance Jr. as a second team forward. A lot of this depends on Byron Scott’s rotation, which I’m never willing to bet on. But you can bet on Russell getting snubbed at the end of the season.

Staff Writer, Shereen Rayan

The Lakers will win more than half of their games.

Let’s look at the last three seasons:

The 2012-13 season was actually a winning season and it was Dwight Howard‘s last season with Los Angeles. The Lakers won 45 and lost 37 games — winning 54.5 percent of their games. This team had Kobe full time but fired their coach Mike Brown after a 1-4 start in favor of Mike D’Antoni who ended the season with a 40-32 record.

The 2013-14 season was the year of the Mamba’s Achilles injury and the first year without Howard. The Lakers won 27 and lost 55 games — winning 32.9 percent of their games. The injuries got so bad in this season that one game Chris Kaman was the only substitute player on the bench; he actually laid down on the seats as a joke. It was hilarious but showed just how injury riddled the team was.

In the 2014-15 season, the Lakers won 21 and lost 61 games — winning 25.6 percent of their games. The Lakers lost their top 10 draft pick, Randle for the season in the first game of season play. Then they lost Bryant for the season due to a shoulder injury. Nick Young went down as well and at one point, it seemed there were anywhere from three to five players injured or not playing.

At some point, fans and the organization decided ‘tanking’ would be the best way to get out of the season and help the team draft a high level, young, talented prospect. Tanking was painful; games that the Lakers were close to winning, they would miraculously lose, which had to be hard on players and coaches alike.

That brings us to this season, the 2015-16 season. The Lakers have a reasonably healthy Kobe, they have Randle back, and they selected Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell second in the NBA draft. On top of all that, they brought back Metta World Peace for some mentoring and possible clutch plays and were able to convince Roy Hibbert to come and play with them to name just a few positive changes.

All of this goes to say that the Lakers squad looks way more impressive than it has in recent seasons. Preseason play has kept the interest of fans and has left media feeling a bit more positive than recent years about the team.

Despite playing in the loaded Western Conference, forty-three wins does not seem that far-fetched this season does it?

What are your bold predictions for this Lakers season? Let us know in the comments.

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