The Los Angeles Lakers had a boring offseason.
Not much happened, as the team had to figure out its front office after the departure of Magic Johnson while also executing one of the biggest NBA trades in recent history, acquiring Anthony Davis for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and draft picks. Like I said, a pretty boring offseason.
I’m, of course, joking, as the Lakers had a wild offseason. However, that offseason has ultimately resulted in the team being in a pretty good spot to compete for a championship. You could say they had the same shot going into last year, but there’s no comparison to be made between last year’s roster and this year’s when they now have Davis as well as other key additions such as Danny Green and Avery Bradley.
Still, it’s hard to make out exactly how good this team is until they really get into the grind of a regular season. If there’s one team that might have an idea of how good the Lakers are though, it’s the Golden State Warriors who will be playing the Lakers on Friday for the fourth time this preseason. The Warriors are led by former MVP, Stephen Curry, who was recently asked about the level of talent that the Lakers have by Sam Amick of The Athletic. Here’s what he had to say about the squad:
I mean they’re tough. You start with LeBron and AD. Those are two guys who demand your attention every possession, and I think they showed (on Wednesday night) a little bit how they can work in tandem, putting pressure on that three or four spot, with either JaVale (McGee) or Dwight (Howard) leading up, and LeBron having two lob threats. And they’ve got some shooting around them, perimeter defense. They’re good. It’s going to take a lot to beat them. You can tell when a team truly believes that a team is good, but they still have to go out and prove it. They have that vibe over there, like they know that they’re talented but I think there’s an edge to them.
It’s not surprising for Curry to start off his compliments of the Lakers with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Lakers are almost assuredly guaranteed to get a decent spot in the playoffs if those two can stay healthy throughout the year. It’s hard to keep the immense talent that those two have at bay.
What is interesting is Curry’s comments towards the end, of how the Lakers have the “vibe” of a team that believes that they’re, in fact, a good team. Curry even goes as far as saying they have an edge to them. This has to be exciting to Lakers fans, as Curry really didn’t need to point this out. Sure, he’s not going to come out and say publicly that he thinks the Lakers suck, he’s obviously going to say that they’re good and tough to beat. It’s another thing to talk about how he interprets the team’s “vibes” and how the Lakers seem to have a chip on their shoulder.
