Los Angeles Lakers: Start of 2019-20 sets up for fast start
The Los Angeles Lakers have an excellent opportunity to get off to a hot start during the 2019-20 season thanks to their early schedule.
The Los Angeles Lakers have found themselves in the headlines once again, unfortunately, it isn’t for a good reason.
Free agent signing, DeMarcus Cousins, suffered a serious knee injury this week while working out. It seems that Cousins has torn his ACL, which will most likely end his season before it even began.
The loss of Cousins could be a big one for the Lakers. While nothing was yet set in stone, he could have easily worked his way into the starting lineup. Even if he didn’t start games, he was looking at the role of at least 20 minutes per game.
With Cousins no longer in the picture, the Lakers will have some decision to make. Do they use their open roster spot to sign a center to help fill the void left by Cousins’ injury? Right now, JaVale McGee is the only true center on the roster. Anthony Davis is capable of playing center but prefers to play power forward.
While we will have to wait to see how Frank Vogel sets his rotation without one of the team’s main free agent signings, there is one thing we do know; the beginning of the regular season will provide the Lakers a chance to figure things out and get off to a hot start.
With as many new faces as the Lakers have, training camp will be important to build chemistry and cohesion. It will take longer than that for things to truly come together, but the first few weeks of the regular season sets up well for them.
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The purple and hold will leave the city of Los Angeles only three times in their first 14 games. Of those three true road games, only one, a visit to the San Antonio Spurs, is against a team that qualified for the postseason last year.
In total, the Lakers will play only six games against playoff teams from last year during this stretch; the LA Clippers, Utah Jazz, Spurs, Toronto Raptors, Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Raptors and Thunder will not be as competitive this season, as their three best players from last season, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Russell Westbrook, are playing for the Clippers and Houston Rockets.
Load management has become the new thing in the NBA. The Raptors did it masterfully with Leonard last season, and it would not be surprising to see more teams employ it this season.
You can be sure James and Davis will rest some games throughout the season, but it shouldn’t be during this stretch. Los Angeles has only one back-to-back set in the first 14 games, as they visit the Phoenix Suns on Nov. 12 then travel to take on the Warriors Nov. 13.
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Getting off to a hot start would do the Lakers some good. It will help them build confidence and they may not have an easier 14-game stretch throughout the season. Piling up wins early and often will go a long way to the Lakers accomplishing their goals for this upcoming season.