After one of the title favorites went out in the first round, it might need to add some more talent for next season.
While there were plenty of disappointing teams throughout the regular season, no team was more disappointing in the playoffs than the Los Angeles Lakers. Seemingly poised to make at least a conference finals run with the duo of Luka Doncic and LeBron James, the Lakers managed to win only one playoff game before being eliminated.
One of the key issues in the Lakers’ loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves was their lack of size. While Jaxson Hayes got a few starts, he played limited minutes, and Lakers coach JJ Redick opted to play small ball for almost the entire series.
Matching up against a team with Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert and Naz Reid, the Lakers’ lack of size was crushing. The Lakers and Rob Pelinka already knew of their big man problems after sending out Anthony Davis in the Doncic deal and were set to bring another center in at the trade deadline.
However, the Lakers called off the trade with the Charlotte Hornets after seeing Mark Williams’ physical. With the Lakers in the offseason much earlier than expected, it might be time for Pelinka to revisit that deal.
In a recent ESPN article, Dave McMenamin reported that the original deal for Williams was at the request of Doncic, who picked the Hornets big man as he preferred lob threat. Considering Doncic’s general struggles offensively without a reliable screener and the Lakers’ issues on the glass and generally on the interior, it might make sense for the Lakers to circle back.
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Williams’ health certainly brings some concerns, but his skillset is exactly what the Lakers need. If the Lakers can simply get some injury luck on their side, Williams could be the missing piece to make Los Angeles a true title contender.
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- Lakers predicted to trade for Luka Doncic’s former $22 million lob threat