The Los Angeles Lakers have built a solid roster. With the additions of Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia, the Lakers have significantly improved from what they were last year. But is it enough to contend for a championship?
The NBA Trade Rumors are already swirling, and the Lakers are right in the thick of it, linked to multiple players, including Miami Heat guard Andrew Wiggins.
But until a rumor becomes a reality, this is the Lakers roster, and the season is just about a month away from tipping off.
ESPN just released an article citing each NBA team’s biggest weakness, or hole, heading into the regular season. For the Lakers, they listed on-ball defense.
“As potent as the Lakers’ perimeter trio of Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves is offensively, it’s limited defensively,” writes Kevin Pelton of ESPN. “Dorian Finney-Smith, now in Houston, served as the Lakers’ perimeter stopper after the deadline. They added Marcus Smart, but at this stage of his career, Smart might be better against big opponents than defending the point of attack.”
Could Andrew Wiggins Fill Defensive Hole For Los Angeles Lakers?
This is where we can circle back to all of the trade rumors and the latest link to Andrew Wiggins. Would Wiggins actually fill this hole of on-ball defense?
While he may not be known as an elite defender, he is an above-average one. He finished last season with the Miami Heat with a defensive rating of 113.5. His best season was with the Golden State Warriors in 2021-22, when he finished with a defensive rating of 108.4.
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Adding Wiggins to the starting 5 would give the Lakers more balance and an improvement on the defensive front.
Most trade rumors have the Lakers sending Rui Hachimura as part of a trade package, so Wiggins would seemingly take his spot in the starting 5. Hachimura has a career defensive rating of 116.3, so Wiggins would be a substantial upgrade.
One of the latest NBA trade rumors also includes Jaime Jaquez Jr. coming back to the Lakers with Wiggins. Jaquez Jr. had an even better defensive rating of 111.9 during last season.
A potential Los Angeles Lakers rotation could look something like:
- C – Deandre Ayton
- PF – LeBron James
- SF – Andrew Wiggins
- SG – Austin Reaves
- PG – Luka Doncic
- Bench – Jaime Jaquez Jr.
- Bench – Marcus Smart
- Bench – Jake LaRavia
This would be a pretty formidable 8-man rotation and would put the Los Angeles Lakers in immediate contention for an NBA Title. Now the question is, will it come to fruition?
Thoughts, Laker Nation? Comment below!