The Los Angeles Lakers have been determined to win games with a brand of basketball that may not quite fit the era they're playing in. There's nothing wrong with innovation, or even turning to the past for answers to questions of the present, but the Lakers' stubbornness has often been their undoing.
Thankfully, the 2024 NBA Draft marks the beginning of the opportunities that will exist for Los Angeles to improve in several crucial areas—with few as pressing as three-point shooting.
In the modern NBA, the ability to consistently knock down three-point field goals is an all but essential characteristic for great teams. Some have placed less of an emphasis on shooting the three-ball shots than others, but teams that thrive from beyond the arc consistently excel overall.
In 2023-24, eight of the top 10 teams in three-point field goals made finished the regular season with a win percentage of .561 or better.
The Lakers seemingly missed the memo, as Darvin Ham's squad was 24th in the category despite ranking eighth in three-point field goal percentage. It was one of the defining flaws of a team that snuck into the playoffs as the No. 7 seed in a season in which Anthony Davis, LeBron James, Austin Reaves, and D'Angelo Russell all made at least 71 appearances.
With a new head coach and two selections at the 2024 NBA Draft, the Lakers could address that flaw as soon as June 26. There are at least five attainable prospects who could help them do so.