The NBA Draft is coming up, which means The Game Haus will be doing draft profiles for each NBA team. Each day, a new team will be analyzed for their past season, their team needs and targets. Today the Los Angeles Lakers will be evaluated.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3SW3qe3Jjw
There was a lot of hype for the Lakers this season with LeBron James coming to town, but when he got injured they faltered and were unable to make the playoffs. They finished the season with a 37-45 record with LeBron being shut down for the last part of the season. LeBron will be with the Lakers for the next few seasons and still has a lot of young players to work with.
They were an average scoring team, ranking 16th in the NBA at 111.8 points per game. Los Angeles was solid at rebounding and passing, as they ranked sixth in rebounding and 11th in assists per game. The defense was in the bottom half of the league at 113.5 points allowed per game. One of their biggest Achille’s heels for the team was their three-point shooting, as they were the second worst in the league this past season.
James, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Moritz Wagner, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart and Isaac Bonga are all under contract for next season. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Rajon Rondo, Mike Muscala, Lance Stephenson, Reggie Bullock, Tyson Chandler, Javale McGee, Alex Caruso, Jemerrio Jones and Johnathan Williams are all set to be free agents.
The Lakers have just one pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
First Round: Pick No. 4
Shooters- Any team that is going to be successful with LeBron as the star needs to surround him with shooters. He draws a lot of defensive attention and needs them to space the floor for the offense to be most effective.
Guards- Lonzo Ball is solid at point guard, but Josh Hart is inconsistent. They need a few more guards to replace the players who will likely leave in free agency.
Perimeter Defenders- With Ingram, Kuzma and James on the floor at the same time, it is sometimes hard for the Lakers to chase guards around the floor. They need a player that can come into games and just focus on shutting down players on the perimeter.
Center- Chandler, McGee and Muscala are going to be free agents and if they are not retained, the Lakers will need to find replacements.
De’Andre Hunter (Photo by bleacherreport.com)
First Round: Pick No. 4: De’Andre Hunter, F, Virginia
The Lakers got a great pick in the lottery for where they finished the season. They can now get another good young player to add to the roster. Hunter is a great perimeter defender, as he won the ACC Defensive Player of the Year Award this season. His great defense helped Virginia win the National Championship. To go along with his great defense, Hunter also hit threes at a great clip last season of 43.1 percent. His ability to spread the floor on offense and defend well makes him a good fit for a team trying to compete with LeBron on the roster.
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