This offseason, we at Gino's Jungle would like to think we have covered everything from A to Z when it comes to the Boston Celtics. With the regular season tip-off quickly approaching we decided it was time to take a look at the enemies. For the next five weeks we will be giving you the down low on all thirty teams in the NBA. We'll be doing this somewhat in conjunction with Celtics Blog's NBA team previews.
Team Name: Los Angeles Lakers
Last Year's Record: 57-25
What did they do this offseason?
When you’re the defending NBA champions you shouldn’t really have to do much. The Lakers, however, didn’t abide by that philosophy. Instead of sticking with what worked last year, the Lakers went out and got better.
After a few weeks of playing the cards with multiple teams in the league, former Magic forward Matt Barnes joined the Lakers for the upcoming season. Barnes will add much needed depth to the Lakers bench.
The purple and yellow didn’t stop there; they also added more depth to the point guard position by bringing in Steve Blake. With Derek Fisher’s age on the rise Blake will add some good insurance at the point guard position.
So, what did the Lakers lose? Nothing. Unless of course you consider DJ Mbenga, or Adam Morrison something.
What will they be good at? Bad at?
As much as I hate to give the Lakers any sort of props, you can’t ignore the fact that they are the defending champs. Obviously they are going to be good at most aspects of the game. Defense, experience, and talent are all positives for the Lakers.
Although a lot of Lakers fans would probably disagree with me, I still consider the (lack of) toughness to be a weakness for this team. Pau Gasol may not be soft, but he sure isn’t one of the toughest big men in the league, and with the chance of Andrew Bynum being healthy the whole season being around .0001% the Lakers may struggle with their front line at times.
What should we expect from the Lakers this season?
Looking at this from a neutral perspective, the goal for the Lakers has to be championship or bust. Although I would like to see them come up short in their attempt for a three-peat ,the goal of the organization is to conquer that feat, whether I like the goal or not. Just like the Celtics believe they can bounce back and win the title, the Lakers also feel as though they are as good as any team in the league.
With a Western Conference that is weaker from 2-15 than my partner on this site, Travis, I expect the Lakers to steamroll through the West in both the regular and postseason.
The Expert's Take: (Alex from NBA Tipoff on goals for this year’s squad)
Win a ring. If a title is not brought back to LA, the season is a failure. Sure, the Miami Heat are looking formidable and the Celtics got better. The Lakers have the same core group and even got a little better. So, it's win it all or you win nothing.
Final Prediction: 60-22 (1st in Western Conference)
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