The Los Angeles Lakers have one of the best rosters in the entire NBA. Los Angeles was able to bring back last year’s core that made it to the Western Conference Finals and added several key additions that should make this year’s team even better.
That being said, this roster is by no means perfect. There are areas of the team that could be improved as the season goes along, whether it be on the buyout market or via a trade at some point during the season.
Frustratingly enough, the Lakers had the solution to some of these questions in the recent past. There are several recent former Lakers who would fit perfectly on this team that fans are definitely going to miss during the 2023-24 season.
4 former Lakers the team will definitely miss this season:
Alex Caruso
Alex Caruso’s addition to a list like this is almost a given. It has been well-documented by now and Lakers fans are probably sick of hearing it again. Los Angeles had every chance in the world to re-sign Caruso but didn’t because of the luxury tax implications. Even worse, they chose to pay Talen Horton-Tucker over him.
Caruso has continued being an elite perimeter defender for the Chicago Bulls and would have been a great addition to this current Lakers’ backcourt. The shooting guard minutes behind Austin Reaves are tricky and with Caruso that would have been a breeze. Imagine those two fan favorites on the roster together.
The one saving grace is that the Lakers could actually get Caruso back with a trade during the season if Chicago goes the wrong way and becomes a seller.