The Los Angeles Lakers have had an offseason to forget thus far. The Lakers have only made two significant signings thus far: re-signing fringe rotation player Max Christie to a four-year, $32 million deal and re-signing 39-year-old superstar LeBron James to a two-year contract with a player option.
Aside from these pivotal signings, the Lakers have been notably silent. The Purple and Gold’s offseason has not been as active as many had hoped. Despite the front office’s actions not meeting the expectations of some Lakers fans, superstar Anthony Davis is not using this as an excuse. He shared his thoughts on the current roster with Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times after a Team USA practice.
“We don’t know what we could have been if we had those guys, especially in the playoffs,” Davis said Sunday. “You know especially Vando because he’s a big part of what we do defensively. But, so we look at the lineup, and you know we come in ready to work.
“And last year is last year. We can’t say, ‘Oh this is the same team.’ It could be a different result. For us it’s about coming in with the mindset of getting to work and seeing how it plays out,” Davis continued.
Although the Lakers had their top two guys in Davis and James, their other guys were hardly available, like Jarred Vanderbilt, as Davis noted. Health is a big reason L.A. played in the play-in tournament again; while Lakers fans don’t want to hear that, it is somewhat true.
The Lakers need to improve this roster, and the only way they can do so is through a trade. There is still plenty of time to make a trade, and we’ll see if Rob Pelinka can do so with this challenging new CBA. Regardless of who the Lakers decide to bring in, if they do so, Davis will be leading the way.