The Case For The Lakers:
The Lakers hold some significant advantages over the Clippers. The Lakers’ superstar duo complement each other’s game’s better than the Clippers’ do. The Lakers also have the more talented roster. And lastly, the Lakers have more valuable experience.
A duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis is equivalent, if not slightly better, than one of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Both superstar duos do carry some injury concerns equivalent to one another, though.
Both Leonard and George are at their best when the ball is in their hands, and Leonard even more so. Paul George is definitely capable of playing off the ball at an extremely high level, though.
LeBron and AD on the other hand, complement each other‘s game’s beautifully. James performs best when the ball is in his hands much like Leonard does. But unlike Paul George, Anthony Davis is probably at his best when he’s playing off the ball. It also helps that Davis is a power forward/center because he doesn’t run plays for himself on the perimeter.
Let’s now take a look at some of the marquee guys each of the Lakers’ and Clippers’ current rosters:
Lakers:
- LeBron James
- Anthony Davis
- Kyle Kuzma
- DeMarcus Cousins
- Danny Green
- JaVale McGee
- Rajon Rondo
- Quinn Cook
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
- Alex Caruso
Clippers:
- Kawhi Leonard
- Paul George
- Lou Williams
- Montrezl Harrell
- Patrick Beverly
- Ivica Zubac
- Landry Shamet
- Rodney McGruder
- Sindarius Thornwell
Both rosters are competitive with one another, but the Lakers roster is deeper. Remove the almost equal superstar duos from each team, and then begin comparing players. The Lakers’ next guy in line behind Davis and James is Kyle Kuzma. The Clippers’, Lou Williams. Lou-Will takes the cake on that one, but not by much. Then line Cousins up with Montrezl Harrell. It’s debatable, but I’d rather DeMarcus Cousins for his legitimate big-man height and proven talent.
Harrell is a solid defender, but incapable of defending great big men, such as Anthony Davis. Danny Green is a slightly better player than Patrick Beverly and Rajon Rondo is the purest point guard from both teams. Shamet can shoot, but so can Quinn Cook. Zubac is a nice player as well, but McGee is the better center of the two. The featured players throughout the Lakers’ roster will have to learn to mesh well with each other, or their superior talent will become inferior to how the Clippers’ roster will perform together.
The Lakers also have the more valued experience on their roster. The Lakers have nine championships between LeBron James, Danny Green, JaVale McGee, Rajon Rondo, and Quinn Cook. The Clippers have just two, coming from Kawhi Leonard. Come playoff time, winning experience matters. The Lakers’ domination of the Clippers in winning experience contributes to their case of being the best team in Los Angeles.