In preparation for his 21st season in the NBA, LeBron James is once again hitting the gym first thing in the morning and putting in a ton of work.
Rob Pelinka, general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers, thinks he has a team this year that will let the NBA’s all-time leading scorer sleep better.
“I think we were very intentional about the versatility that this roster has, the depth that this roster has,” Pelinka said on Thursday. Top to bottom, I believe there are enhancements in spacing and shooting. All of it was done with LeBron’s upcoming 21st year in mind. Because finishing is what drives him, we need to work together to get there with him. We’ll be better able to handle it thanks to the addition of depth, adaptability, and shooting ability.
Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis will be leading their colleagues back to training camp next week, and the club has preserved most of last season’s roster while also adding many bright newcomers in an effort to construct a complete contender around James and Davis. Pelinka was curious about his team’s potential after seeing them go 18-8 after the trade deadline and then go on to win a play-in game and two playoff rounds.
The Lakers figure to have their greatest roster since hoisting their last championship banner in late 2020, with complete seasons from midseason signings D’Angelo Russell, Jarrett Vanderbilt, and Rui Hachimura, plus five new veterans.
Darvin Ham, the team’s coach, thinks his youthful, talented, athletic squad is well-balanced and has a lot of NBA experience between them. We can put around (James) and AD players who are motivated to make an influence on the team’s success. We’ll be able to better use (James’) minutes from game to game as a result of that. The grandfather clause of the rest rule applied to him. That made me delighted to see.
The new NBA player participation regulation is meant to encourage clubs to play their best players more often, and James is one of a select few veterans to receive a rest exception. Pelinka and Ham have both endorsed the plan, and neither James nor Davis is expected to miss many games this season if they stay healthy.
A lot of “heavy lifting” will be done early on by “the team that’s around (James), the pieces that we have in place,” Ham added.
The Lakers kept last year’s Western Conference runner-ups Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves, Vanderbilt, and Hachimura, and added Jaxson Hayes, Taurean Prince, Gabe Vincent, Cam Reddish, and Christian Wood.
The Lakers spent the most money (three years and $186 million) on Davis, a talented big man who has been great for the team while healthy.
There is a long way for him to lead the organization and win more championships, Ham added, because “he’s only 30 years old.” In anticipation of his next year, I exclaimed, “I’m excited for the type of year he’s going to have.”
According to Pelinka, the Lakers are willing to take a risk on their big man.