The New York Times published a new video of the Los Angeles Lakers, who are set to meet with LeBron James this summer. They plan on signing him and trading for Paul George in order to compete with the Golden State Warriors. The trade would also make sense because they could offer Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma as incentive packages.
The “lakers superteam” is a video that shows the Lakers planning on LeBron James and lineups.
LeBron James (left) and Frank Vogel (right) of the Los Angeles Lakers
Based on the Lakers’ roster and coach Frank Vogel’s attitude to several playing-time choices early in the NBA season, you had to think there was a plan to give the club a small-ball appearance, with Anthony Davis at center and LeBron James at power forward. The Lakers are hoping that Trevor Ariza can fill that need as a two-way winger who can hold his own.
During a videotaped meeting for Spectrum Sports’ Backstage: Lakers program, which revealed a pregame meeting for what was ultimately a Lakers defeat to the Clippers, Lakers coaches very well admitted that was the case.
Backstage Lakers has some great behind-the-scenes details from the coaches meeting (before to the Clippers game).
-Trevor Ariza still had a limp at that moment -Confirmation that the club is waiting for him to go small completely -AD was growing exhausted from his lengthy shifts twitter.com/QAjl58HKHT
December 12, 2021 — Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen)
During the discussion, Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy, who is also a locker-room liaison, said that Ariza, who is returning from preseason ankle surgery, “still has a little bit of a limp.”
And it was at that point that Vogel made it obvious that Ariza is crucial to the team’s small-lineup plans. The Lakers want to play one big player when Davis is well (he’s been out the previous two games due to knee pain), and they’ve chosen Dwight Howard over fellow veteran center DeAndre Jordan. Davis should get the remainder of the center minutes, while James has also played the 5.
“Now that we’re playing one center,” Vogel said, “are there moments when we’re waiting for (Ariza) to come back to play him and Bron at the 3-4 and AD at the 5?” We do, however, have enough wings to play Bron at 4.”
By Christmas, Ariza might be back with the Lakers.
On the Ariza front, there’s reason to be optimistic, since he’ll start practicing with the Lakers’ G League club, the South Bay Lakers, this week. The club is “hoping” that Ariza will return around Christmas, maybe as soon as next week, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Trevor Ariza is slated to practice with several members of the South Bay Lakers, as well as Rajon Rondo and Kent Bazemore, on Monday as he continues to ramp up his activity in preparation for his regular-season debut after ankle surgery.
December 13, 2021 — Dave McMenamin (@mcten)
In October, Ariza had ankle surgery. He spent last season with Miami, appearing in just 30 games, but sat out the first half of the season while with the Oklahoma City Thunder due to “personal concerns.” The Lakers were interested in signing him at the time, but they were too focused on recruiting centers and didn’t have the roster room.
Ariza fits the model of what the Lakers need, particularly on the defensive end, where the Lakers have been hammered by terrible perimeter defense. Ariza is an excellent perimeter defender, yet at 36 years old, coming off ankle surgery, and having been in just 83 games since October 2019, his effectiveness for the Lakers is debatable.
There’s also the issue of whether it’s prudent for the Lakers to place their expectations on Ariza for a season turnaround. If the Lakers do make a trade this season, it’s commonly assumed that they’ll want a 3-and-D winger with size.
Is Anthony Davis Sick of It?
Another revelation that leaked from the Backstage show’s behind-the-scenes was worry over Anthony Davis’ wind. “It becomes difficult to remove AD until we go back to Dwight to complete the quarter,” Vogel said if the Lakers start Davis at center to open a quarter.
Of course, the Lakers desire strong second- and fourth-quarter finishes, which necessitates Davis’ presence on the court. However, if Davis starts those quarters and is unable to play for the whole 12 minutes, the Lakers’ coaches must find a method to rest him or persuade him to communicate that he is exhausted.
Davis has said that tiredness sets in, according to Handy: “When he comes out of the game, he’ll make note of it.”
“He keeps claiming he’s exhausted,” Handy said, “and he’s right.” ‘Look, you get—if you don’t want to run the whole quarter, put your hand up,’ I told him, exactly as Mike (Penberthy) was telling him. ‘Raise your hand if you want to be substituted.’
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Watch This Video-
The “retirement home lakers” is a video that was released by the Lakers on their YouTube channel. The video shows the team’s plan for LeBron James and possible lineups.
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