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As fun as it’s been to watch the Los Angeles Lakers with LeBron James leading the way, a couple issues have come to light and are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore: The defense, and the center rotation. The two concerns are related, which, if we’re looking for positives here, makes them a little easier to take care of.
Today’s episode of Locked on Lakers covers what should or could be done to address the team’s most glaring weakness.
We start by talking about the players already on the roster. JaVale McGee has been perfectly fine as the team’s starting and primary center. When he’s been on the court, the team has looked, for the most part, at least fairly good. There are still some improvements I’d like to see, but this is at least a decent place to start.
Beyond McGee, though, it’s been pretty bumpy. Michael Beasley has somehow looked better defensively than offensively. Kyle Kuzma has looked, well, quite frankly, lost on both ends. Ivica Zubac looked better in his last game, but for the most part, has looked like the same Zubac we’ve come to know over the first couple years of his career.
If things don’t turn around quickly with all those guys, the Lakers will have to make a move. The playoff chase in the west is going to force quick resolutions on the team, so what options do they have in this regard? There are a few names that you might recognize, but for the most part, there is a reason they’re still available.
In the final segment, I take a look at the potential trade market for centers. The issue is: The Lakers can’t feasibly make a move until mid-December, when all the contracts signed over the summer became available to be moved. We’ll see if some guys become available after regular season rosters are finalized, but this path forward will require patience.
As always, this is just a tidbit of the full context given in the show. Listen to the full discussion below and please check out old episodes, or guarantee you won’t miss any ever again by subscribing on iTunes.