The Los Angeles Lakers look to be a step behind the team they will likely be facing in the NBA Finals, the Brooklyn Nets. The Lakers and the Nets faced off for the first time of the season along with the first time since the Nets acquired superstar guard James Harden.
Both the Lakers and the Nets were missing key players for the game. Anthony Davis was sidelined for the Lakers with an Achilles injury while a hamstring injury kept Kevin Durant off of the court.
The Los Angeles Lakers were defeated by the Brooklyn Nets by a final score of 109-98 and highlighted quite a few issues with the Lakers roster that will need to be addressed if they want to repeat as NBA champions.
The first issue with the Lakers roster that needs to be addressed is their lack of outside shooting. In their game against the Nets, the Lakers shot 26.7% from three and on the season the team ranks 19th in the league in three-point percentage at 35.8%.
The second issue is someone to fill the scoring void that is prevalent with Anthony Davis being injured. Up to this point, LeBron James has done what he can to make up for the scoring the Lakers are missing from Davis, however, it is impossible for him to do it on his own.
In the matchup against the Nets, there were only two players not named LeBron who scored double-digit points. Those players being Kyle Kuzma (16 points) and Montrezl Harrell (10 points).
The final thing that the Lakers need to add to the team with Davis being sidelined is someone to make up for the defensive and rebounding presence he has. Obviously, there will not be a single player that the Lakers can find that will be able to match the impact that Davis has on the boards and defensively, however, with the team being built around a defensive mindset, it is essential that they do not begin to lack in that end of the court.