Good evening, Laker Nation and welcome to my preview for the Lakers' 2014-15 NBA Season. We are less than 24 hours away from the first tip off of the NBA Season as a whole and the Lakers have a home opener against the Dwight Howard and the Houston Rockets.
So, where to begin here. Okay, last season, arguably the season most of us Laker fans want to forget about. The Lakers were awful at home, they gave up a huge amount of points, jacking up too many threes, that's the nutshell for that season. We're all glad that Mike D'Antoni is gone and the 7 seconds or less and shoot the three away offense is gone. This offseason, the Lakers had a lot of expectations to sign big time free agents, LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony, and that plan blew up into smithereens and Mitch Kupchak had to resort to plan B, trading for Jeremy Lin, signing Ed Davis, claiming Carlos Boozer off amnesty waivers, and re-signing guys like Nick Young, Xavier Henry, Jordan Hill, Wesley Johnson, etc. Then after a long coaching search, the Lakers come into terms with Byron Scott to be the new head coach, even though it was long, it was kind of predictable since the Laker organization laid eyes on him all this time.
In terms of preseason play, unlike last season, I did see some highlights of some of the preseason games. In fact, I just only saw one full game and that was the preseason opener vs. the Denver Nuggets when the Lakers won that 95-98. Based on what I saw, Kobe Bryant's back, that's good to see, aside from the first preseason, I thought I saw no rust from Kobe after being out of the game for quite some time. Another positive I saw, I saw more activity from the Lakers both on the offense and defensive side of the ball. It's like every from every missed shot during every Laker possession, they were working their butts off to give the Lakers second chance points, particularly Jordan Hill, Ed Davis, and rookie Julius Randle. They were also using their athleticism to get some blocks on the defensive end; there was one play in particular where both Randle and Davis got a double block for a jump ball, I thought that was pretty impressive. Two players that stood out to me during the preseason: Wesley Johnson and Ronnie Price. Wes has improved his confidence in his jump shot, I mean he was hitting shots that usually missed last season and I hope he continues to build off of that confidence, he's decent defensively, but he's too athletic to not be efficient on offense. Ronnie Price, I've always liked him since he was in Utah, when we had playoff battles against the Jazz; he's always been a really scrappy defender and a great competitor when given the minutes. Looking at the highlights of the second preseason game against the Jazz and the Phoenix Suns, he was generating turnovers, drawing charges, he really turned up the defensive activity for other players around him and they bought in and turned it up.
Some areas of concern, I'd say the lack of a big body in the paint, lack of a true small forward, and injuries. We're going to miss what Gasol brought to the table, what Bynum brought to the table, and yes what Dwight brought to the table, someone that could post up and be dominant in the paint. I say that's one of the areas the Lakers failed to address. We signed Davis, Boozer, Hill, and drafted Randle, but they don't have capabilities to be that "bang bang" player in the paint because either they're a bit undersized or they're post up game is not polished. Small Forward, aside from Wesley Johnson, that position has huge void. Though, Nick Young can play that spot when he gets back, once we go up against a Durant (when he comes back), a LeBron, or a Carmelo Anthony, that position is going to be in deep trouble. Injuries, obviously Xavier Henry is out with a knee, Nick Young is out with a thumb (while guarding Kobe, smh), Ryan Kelly, out with a hamstring, Wayne Ellington, out with a concussion, but the key injury of them all, Steve Nash with a back injury. If you read the story, Nash injured his back carrying his bags and he's officially out for the season. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Nash, one of the best point guards to ever play the game, but it's time to hang it up for him. As much as I feel sorry for him for not getting that elusive ring, he's got nothing to lose, he's already a future 1st ballot HOF. The least he can do to earn the money on his contract is take on an unofficial assistant coach role and mentor Lin, mentor Price, and mentor the 2nd round rookie, Jordan Clarkson.
Wow, probably the longest preview I made, but I'm almost done. About the schedule, it looks like yet another brutal start to the season: Rockets, Suns, Clippers, Warriors, Suns again, Hornets, Grizzlies, Pelicans, Spurs, and Warriors again. You talk about a schedule where the Lakers have to start off playing against teams that made the playoffs, almost made the playoffs, and played above .500. However, we have a legitimate chance at pulling upsets on most teams. Unlike last season, the Lakers are gonna compete night in and night out against these teams, maybe aside against the Spurs and Clippers, most of these games at the start should be competitive.
So the ultimate question goes: with Kobe back are the Lakers in contention or are they still rebuilding towards the future? This Laker team should be a little, not a lot, but a little better than last year's team. Kobe and Byron Scott are going to show these younger players what it means to play like a true Laker and they will pave the way towards the future. Not a lot of expectations on my part, but the Lakers, as long as the are competitive, they will be a lot better defensively and make better decisions on offense rather than just run and jack up threes. I say we will finish just about 2 or 3 seeds short out of the playoffs, but if they stay healthy, then they have a nominal chance at sneaking in. Either way, like I said, this season should be a lot better than last year. GO LAKERS!
*And a little note for Raider fans, some sad news I forgot to point out. Offensive linemen, Mo Collins passed away yesterday at the age of 38 of kidney failure. I was still too young to know about the O-line back then when Rich Gannon, Tim Brown, Jerry Rice, and Charlie Garner were running the show, but Mo played an integral part along with guys like Barry Sims, Lincoln Kennedy, and Steve Wisniewski to turn that offense to what it was back then, an offense that could kill you on the air or on the ground. It was good to reminisce those days as a kid in the midst of what's transpiring this season. RIP big man, say hello to Al and our integral member of the Raider Nation, the Oaktown Pirate (which I also forgot to point out during last week's game vs. the Cardinals).*
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