Los Angeles Lakers: Showtime Lakers who would fit in nicely in 2020

The Los Angeles Lakers were riding high throughout the 2019-20 NBA season. But every team is a work in progress, and they can look to their past to find the missing pieces for this year’s squad

Before the 2019-20 NBA season was suspended due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the Los Angeles Lakers were having themselves a whale of a season. They won 24 of their first 27 games, and they attained a 49-14 record, tops in the Western Conference, once the basketballs stopped bouncing indefinitely on March 11.

LeBron James, despite being 35 years of age and having the mileage of an athlete much older, was having yet another stellar season. He not only maintained his scoring and rebounding prowess from previous seasons, but he was also leading the league in assists for the first time with 10.6 dimes a game.

Anthony Davis was having a great maiden voyage with the Purple and Gold, averaging 26.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 2.4 blocks per game while making himself perhaps the leading candidate for Defensive Player of the Year.

Dwight Howard was having a renaissance and earning the trust, respect and even love of Lakers fans, something which seemed straight-up unthinkable less than 12 months ago.

Frank Vogel was starting to prove that maybe he was more than just a solid NBA coach, as he made the Lakers into an elite team at both ends of the floor, as well as arguably the best fast-break team in the league.

That fast-break has made this year’s Lakers look a whole lot like the second coming of Showtime.

But no team is perfect, and many have said that this team needs help in the backcourt, as well as a stronger bench.

If one looks at the actual Showtime Lakers of the 1980s, they will find three key players that could’ve taken this year’s Lakers from title contenders to the unquestioned favorites to win their 17th NBA world championship.