Former Lakers Champion Casts Doubt on Team's Playoff Outlook

The Los Angeles Lakers finished last season as a competitive four seed, defeating the Houston Rockets in the first round despite missing Luka Doncic, before losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round. The offseason brought about massive changes as the team lost LeBron James, Luke Kennard, Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura, Deandre Ayton, and Jaxson Hayes via trade or free agency. All five were consistent rotation players, with James, Kennard, Smart, Hachimura, and Ayton starting in the first round of the playoffs before Austin Reaves got healthy. The revamped lineup will include Walker Kessler, Quentin Grimes, Collin Sexton, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Kevon Looney, Jaden Hardy, Ziaire Williams, Matisse Thybulle and rookie Cameron Carr. Jarred Vanderbilt, Jake LaRavia, Dalton Knecht, and Bronny James all return alongside Doncic and Reaves. Speaking to Lakers Nation, the former Lakers guard gave his concerns over the new-look roster when evaluating their playoff chances. "I mean, at first I wasn't sure where they were going the direction and then everything happened so fast. And I was like, 'Damn, OK. This piece, that piece.' And I liked a lot of the pieces they picked up. I know they're young, so not super experienced. I think they're going to be a pretty good regular season team. Playoffs, I don't know because of the youth and experience, but I like the moves they made, I like the pieces they have. They have more depth, they got younger and faster. They can get out and run a little more," he said. Green is a three-time NBA champion, winning three rings with three different teams, including the Lakers in 2020. The team doesn't have the playoff experience that LeBron and Smart brought to the team last year, but the bigger question of experience is their experience together. With all the new pieces, the Lakers will have to find chemistry throughout the season and then hope it's enough in the playoffs. Individual playoff experience matters less than team playoff experience, but the Lakers are lacking in both departments. The depth of the team will be a big key in the playoffs, as the Lakers found out last year. While the Thunder would throw ten guys at the Lakers in the second-round sweep, head coach JJ Redick largely played six or seven guys. The fatigue started to show in the second half of each game. The Lakers having new depth in the playoffs could be a big benefit if everyone is able to come together and get on the same page throughout the regular season.