3 Players apart from LeBron James and Anthony Davis who will be key for the LA Lakers in Orlando
The LA Lakers are one of the favourites to lift the NBA Championship come October. They have a roster filled with players of varied skill-sets, led by perhaps the best duo in the NBA right now - LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
LeBron James and Davis are arguably two of the top 5 players in the world right now, and there is no question that LA Lakers fans will pin their hopes of another NBA championship on those two.
Having said that, the LA Lakers are certainly not bereft of talent. They have at least two very decent and reputed NBA players in each position. Most importantly, the squad they have assembled is a very experienced one. Almost all of the players in their rotation have played multiple seasons in the NBA, and some have even won a ring earlier in their careers.
Each one of them will have to play somewhere near their best if the Purple and Gold are to win their 17th title. LeBron James and Anthony Davis have shown a lot of faith in their teammates in the regular season, and the supporting cast has duly repaid the trust bestowed upon them.
LeBron James and the LA Lakers in search of the NBA title
It will be that little bit more special if the LeBron James-led LA Lakers can win the NBA title this season, given the grief the city of Los Angeles has gone through over the tragic demise of LA Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
These three players, besides LeBron James and Anthony Davis, will have to play a monumental part to make their dreams come true.
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#1 Javale McGee
Long gone are the days when JaVale McGee was a frequent entrant in the Shaqtin'-a-fool series. The 7'0" center has gone from strength to strength in his 11-year-old NBA career.
He was a very error-prone big man in his early days, often making questionable passes and guilty of losing concentration in key moments. As he got older - true to the saying - he got wiser. He played his role as a back-up center very well for the Golden State Warriors, and won two rings in the process.
Those performances won him a starting berth with the LeBron James-led LA Lakers in 2018-19, and he proved to be a shrewd acquisition as he averaged a career high 12 points per game. That number might have dropped drastically with the inclusion of Davis this season, but he continues to be an important part of the starting line-up.
McGee knows his role and plays it to perfection. He allows Davis to operate in the paint when he wishes to, and always sets a hard screen whenever instructed to do so.
Defensively, McGee is not to be messed around with. He averages 1.5 blocks per game in under 17 minutes of action. The LA Lakers and LeBron James will hope that McGee keeps playing the selfless brand of basketball that has finally brought him the respect he deserves at the age of 32.
#2 Danny Green
Another two-time champion in the LA Lakers' ranks is 6'6" shooting guard Danny Green. Green is the definition of an elite role player, and keeps proving year-in year-out why he's one of the most sought-after pieces for any contending team who want to get even better.
After helping the Toronto Raptors win their first ever NBA title last season, Green decided to take his talents to California to join LeBron James. Even at the age of 32, he earned himself a handsome $30 million, 2 year deal.
Just like with LeBron James, his impact on the court is evident. The LA Lakers are much better with him on the court than without him. Their offensive rating increases from 108.7 to 113.6 when he is playing.
They're also a better defensive team with him in action. Green's floor spacing is of extreme importance to the way the LA Lakers are set up to play, and that is evident from the fact that their assist percentage rises to 62.2% from 58.3% when he's on the court.
Green's perimeter defense is as good as it gets, and his 6'10" wingspan means that he can guard positions 1 to 3. Green was a microwave from 3-point range last season for the Raptors as he drained 45.5% of them in over 5 attempts per game.
He might not be shooting lights out this season but is still very respected in catch-and-shoot situations, which gives the other players like LeBron James more space than the opposition would like to give him.
Danny Green suffered a shooting slump last season in the playoffs, and although it didn't cost his team the title, the LA Lakers and LeBron James would hope they don't have to worry about that at all to begin with.
#3 Kyle Kuzma
After a hugely impressive sophomore season where he averaged 18.7 points per game with a field goal percentage of 45.6, Kyle Kuzma's progression has taken a drastic hit in his third season in the NBA. He's shooting a career low 29.7% from three whilst averaging only 12.5 points per game.
However, it is important to remember that he's playing only 24.6 minutes per game compared to the 30+ minutes he was getting on a nightly basis before LeBron James and Anthony Davis came to town.
Kuzma has been demoted to the bench, starting only 7 games all season. Despite the minutes constraint and lack of confidence that he seems to be struggling with, he's still the LA Lakers' best scorer after Davis and LeBron James. The 6'8" power-forward was a shining light in an otherwise dull LA Lakers season last time around, and he has shown that he is capable of dropping big-time numbers when he's in the rhythm.
The LA Lakers faithful will surely remember his 36-point performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder, where Kuzma single-handedly won the game in the absence of both Davis and LeBron James.
To be fair to Kuzma, he had to face a lot of criticism this season. On top of that, there was a lot of trade rumors involving him and it was believed that the LA Lakers were willing to trade him for a more experienced third scoring option. However, with the trade deadline well in the past and Kuzma still with the LA Lakers, it is him who they will look up to when the ball just isn't falling for Davis and LeBron James.
Kuzma knows better than anybody else that he needs to up his intensity when he's on the court, both offensively and defensively. He needs to score more points, but off lesser shots - while also not giving up easy points on the other end. It is by no means an easy task, but we all know the 24-year-old has got what it takes to reach the next level in the post-season.
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