It’s clear that for right now, the Western Conference belongs to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the San Antonio Spurs are next up, trying to take them down.
That leaves the Lakers just out of the conversation and trying to improve enough to be a threat to these two young teams. One clear weakness the Lakers have is a lack of depth.
The Thunder were able to play more players for longer stretches in their series against the Lakers. The Spurs have also played nine-plus players for 10 or more minutes in most
of their playoff contests.
Meanwhile, LA’s rotation continued to shrink in the postseason, and few players cracked double-digit minutes. In Game 4 against OKC, Lakers head coach JJ Redick essentially played just seven players. The only other players who saw the court were Adou Thiero and Jarred Vanderbilt, and they both played just three minutes.
It’s not sustainable to only play seven guys for months of playoff basketball, but that was the situation Redick was in.
However, now that the postseason is over, the Lakers can assess their roster and bring in guys who can be part of their rotation and contribute to winning basketball.
Redick spoke about depth, continuity and where the Lakers stack up against the best in the West during his exit interview.
“I don’t necessarily view depth as a rotation thing,” Redick said. “Whether you play eight, nine, whether you play 11, 12, you need to have depth and that depth typically comes in the roster spots 10-15. Whether that’s internal development, draft, trade, free agency, whatever that is, we need to build depth beyond just an eight- or nine-man rotation because you’re naturally going to have injuries…It really is about just building that depth.
“We can figure out, as coaches, what a rotation looks like. But you look at OKC’s roster, you look at San Antonio’s roster, those guys, they have 13 high-level rotation players, minimum. That’s a luxury to have in the NBA and it’s one of the reasons those teams are really good.”
Based on how Redick used his roster, it’s clear the Lakers don’t have 13 high-level rotation players. OKC and San Antonio do, and that’s why they are still playing and Los Angeles is not.
Sure, Luka Dončić was out, and he would’ve absolutely helped, but not enough to turn a sweep into a series win.
The tricky part for the Lakers is that they were a very good team, but need to make moves to become great. How can they balance keeping all the things that made them a 50-win team while making enough changes to take a leap?
“I believe in continuity, but…If you’re trying to win a championship, which this organization is, and I’m trying to win a championship, ” Redick said. “I know [Rob Pelinka] is trying to win a championship. I know Jeanie is. I know Mark is.
“We’re trying to win a championship and so you have to be realistic and assess where you’re at. We’re not good enough right now. There probably will be some continuity. There probably won’t be. But that’s what the next two months are for.”
Redick left room for some continuity, but he said it as clear as day that LA isn’t good enough. If they’re trying to win a title, change is needed.
Sure, the Lakers would like to retain Marcus Smart, and bringing back Austin Reaves is a priority, but this is not a run-it-back roster.
Over the summer, we’ll see what that change looks like, but if the Lakers front office does its job, they’ll bring in the players Redick needs so that this time next year, he has enough guys to take on the Spurs and Thunder and have a legitimate shot at beating them.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.
