Los Angeles Lakers Roster 2021- 2022 season
Guards:
Russel Westbrook/Kendrick Nunn/Rajon Rondo/Wayne Ellington/Austin Reeves/Malik Monk/Talen Horton-Tucker/Kent Bazemore/Trevelin Queen
Forwards:
Lebron James/Anthony Davis/Carmelo Anthony/Trevor Ariza/Cameron Oliver
Centers:
Dwight Howard/DeAndre Jordan
There are a couple of reasons to be excited to watch the new-look Lakers to take the court come October, even though there are a few questions looming over the new squad’s championship aspirations. The Los Angeles Lakers remain the favorites to win the NBA title in 2022 behind their “Big 3” of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook, but they also have one of the oldest teams in franchise history.
Mocked as the Purple and Old, the Lakers will have four 35-year-olds on next year’s team, including Carmelo Anthony (37), James (36), Trevor Ariza (36) and Dwight Howard (35). Seven of the eight players with guaranteed contracts at this point are 32 or older, including Wayne Ellington (33), Westbrook (32) and Kent Bazemore (32). Davis is 28. The Lakers then fleshed out their roster with the additions of Malik Monk, Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn, who will play important roles as the younger players on the team.
But can the Lakers win it all this 75th season?
The Lakers are still the heavy favorites to be the NBA Champs this 2022 together with the Nets, Warriors and Bucks but with the roster swapped out literally since winning the 2019-20 NBA championship, save for their two best players and the new LA native with a chance to be something special.
LeBron’s most successful teams have been those that have shot the 3-ball well enough to sustain an effective half-court offense during the postseason. Starting with his second stint in the heartland, the
tried-and-true path to success for LeBron James-led clubs has been to surround The King with shooters. Flanking the floor with a gang of snipers stretches defenses thin, creating a dual-threat out of James’ rack-attacks.
With the Lakers’ roster re-edification, they’ve added a bunch of veritable snipers who shot 40% or better from distance last season. Theoretically, Carmelo Anthony (40.9%) can provide some of the catch and shoot spacing at the four that the Lakers lacked last season. Malik Monk (40.1%) and Kent Bazemore (40.8%) will ideally give the Lakers a couple of options capable of replicating some of the intermittently incandescent shooting those Cavs wrung out of wings like James Jones and J.R. Smith. Kendrick Nunn (38.1%) is a fantastic shooter off the bounce, and in transition, a couple of areas the Lakers sorely lacked production in last season. Wayne Ellington (42.2%) gives the Lakers some
Korveresque movement shooting to open up the floor without possession of the basketball. Though he’s not quite as sharpshooting as Korver or as steady of a team defender, Ellington provides the Lakers with an emergency release valve to open up the offense when little else is working.
It’s easy to see how DeAndre Jordan’s playing style was framed after Dwight Howard’s game, as both are tall, athletic leapers who made careers on the back of high-flying dunks and controlling the boards offensively and defending the rim defensively. The like-minded skillsets for the pairing will provide the Lakers the ability to interchange the two bigs similar to Howard and JaVale McGee two seasons ago.
Rajon Rondo’s second stint with the Lakers, the need have shifted noticeably away from the court and more in the direction of that leadership and mentorship. It’s a role Rondo has embraced publicly and it’s a role he’s flourished in throughout his career even while playing. Rondo leaned on that experience to discuss his role as a veteran leader with the Lakers this season as well as his eagerness to learn from his teammates.
Talen Horton-Tucker is showing all the signs of a player on the verge of a breakout. While he’s got to improve on his inconsistent outside shooting to make the most of his finishing talent, it’s not inconceivable to think of THT as the bridge to the Lakers’ post-LeBron era of team-building.
Lebron James changed his number jersey from 23 to 6. But the main concern is The King is already turning 37 this season but still light years away from retirement, and he unfortunately is slowing down. He played the fewest minutes per game of his career last season and missed more games than
ever before. In the past three seasons, he’s suffered two debilitating lower-body injuries that severely hampered or ruled him out entirely from playing through the end of the season. He may still be the best player in the NBA when fully healthy, but can he still sustain the load of 82 games without taking toll on his load management.
Anthony Davis was a wrecking ball of efficiency on both ends of the court. He drilled jumpers from all over the floor at career-best rates and made life miserable for any opponent attempting to score from anywhere in his immediate vicinity. But the brittleness is becoming his nemesis which needs to overcome this coming season.
With the addition of Russel Westbrook, the Lakers can make magic out of their new tripartite superstar grouping. However, a new Westbrook needs to pare down his share of ill-advised chucking. Though the Lakers will want Westbrook to cut, screen, and generally move without the ball to prevent
clogging up the team’s half-court offense, his impact on that end will boil down to his willingness to do less instead of still being the all around guy on the court.
With the championship expectation and aspiration still set for this season, it is still exciting to see how things will work out with this new Purple and Gold Team and to be able to secure another ring to break the tie with the Celtics with 17 chips apiece and give the 18th championship to the LakeShow.
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