Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sunday, April 27, 2025 – Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) and Los … More
The Los Angeles Lakers lost a nail biter on the road against the Minnesota Timberwolves, putting them in a tough 1-3 spot as the series back to Los Angeles.
Regardless of whether they get back into the series or not, the franchise is looking at some major needs going into the offseason.
Big man depth
While the Lakers are huge at virtually every spot, they are short on center. But in quality, and in depth.
The Lakers famously, or perhaps infamously, rescinded the deal they made for Mark Williams with the Charlotte Hornets before the February 6th trade deadline, and that’s currently looking like a rough decision.
Jaxson Hayes can barely stay on the floor, leaving head coach JJ Redick to play small ball, relying on the size of Luka Dončić, LeBron James, and Rui Hachimura to make up for the shortcomings at the center spot.
Not having a big, physical presence down low, as well as someone who can block shots, rebound, run the floor, and be a constant lob threat, is a problem when Dončić is on the floor.
It leaves the Slovenian superstar passing the ball around the perimeter a lot, as opposed to getting into the teeth of the defense, and passing over the top of defenders.
You can almost copy and paste the same issue, and attach it to James as well, whose size is almost negated in many ways, seeing as the Wolves aren’t overly concerned about James using himself as leverage, only to find someone to dump the ball off to, as he gets closer to the rim.
This isn’t to say the Lakers should be looking at players that are enormously costly. But they are in need of usable depth.
Guard depth
While it sounds perfectly reasonable in theory that Dončić, James, and Austin Reaves can handle the playmaking duties, there isn’t a lot coming off the bench.
Gabe Vincent runs hot and call, and his playmaking isn’t exactly something you can build around in the second unit.
Sure, the Lakers can stagger their three best players, and they are, but there is a strong need for someone who can come in off the bench, and make stuff happen. Given that there currently isn’t that alternative, Dončić, James, and Reaves are forced to stretch themselves thin.
In many ways, this feels as though the Lakers, when they made the Dončić trade, are still in Step 1 of what is a crucial adjustment period.
Dončić is not Anthony Davis, and the roster isn’t necessarily tailored around the strengths of Dončić, suggesting there will be some modest to heavy roster turnover this summer. And rightfully so.
Whether the Lakers can free up assets to field the team they want, and fill the holes currently on the roster, remains to be seen, however, especially in this new restrictive collective bargaining agreement.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
