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Why depth is the biggest strength of the Los Angeles Lakers

By Zane Harris

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MARCH 21: Head coach Frank Vogel of the Los Angeles Lakers talks with Kyle Kuzma #0, Dennis Schroder #17 and Montrezl Harrell #15 during a time-out from the second half of the NBA game against the Phoenix Suns at Phoenix Suns Arena on March 21, 2021 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Lakers 111-94. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MARCH 21: Head coach Frank Vogel of the Los Angeles Lakers talks with Kyle Kuzma #0, Dennis Schroder #17 and Montrezl Harrell #15 during a time-out from the second half of the NBA game against the Phoenix Suns at Phoenix Suns Arena on March 21, 2021 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Lakers 111-94. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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After free agency and nearing the regular season, there were real conversations happening that argued if the Los Angeles Lakers roster were split in half, both halves would make it to the playoffs.

Now, that depth will be put to the test and it will be seen how well the role players will be able to do on their own. Anthony Davis has been sidelined for a substantial amount of time with a calf strain and tendonitis in his Achilles. Along with this, LeBron James is expected to miss some time with a high ankle sprain.

With the Lakers being contenders, any injury that occurs on the team will be handled as conservatively as possible. Adding in the factor that both James and Davis are franchise-caliber players, the Lakers will be more than happy to sacrifice some regular-season games to be completely sure that the two are fully healthy before coming back.

The Los Angeles Lakers have a great reason to take their time with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

Depth. The team’s depth is its biggest strength.

With offseason moves that landed the leading bench scorer in the NBA and the reigning 6th man of the year in the purple and gold, the Lakers will still be in good hands even with the best duo in the NBA sidelined.

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The Lakers will now be running with a big three of Dennis Schröder, Montrezl Harrell, and Kyle Kuzma, it will be an exciting stretch of basketball for the Lakers where fans will get to see what the role players can do with the ball in their hands more.

When the season is said and done, the Lakers may end up seeing this stretch as a blessing in disguise. It will give this new big three a chance to get in a groove and more shots up as they all have seen a cut in their shots per game and points per game when compared to last season.

Last season, Schröder averaged 18.9 points on 14.8 shots per game off of the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Harrell averaged 18.6 points on 9.5 shots per game coming off of the bench for the Los Angeles Clippers. Finally, Kuzma was averaging 12.8 points on 11.0 shots per game last season.

It is very likely that these three will see their numbers skyrocket in both shots and points. Along with this, a lot of the playmaking will be on Schröder’s shoulders with LeBron being sidelined. Kuzma and Harrell will be expected to big up the slack on the boards if the Lakers want to maintain their winning ways in what will be a tough but useful stretch for the Lakers.

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For many teams, missing two max contract players would be a death sentence for a season. However, due to the great depth that the Los Angeles Lakers have on their roster, the team will still be in good hands with the two stars sidelined.

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