“If you’re a Lakers fan, you got to feel a little sick to your stomach” - Brian Windhorst believes the Western Conference is about to ramp up big time, says it’ll be former ROTY’s league
The Golden State Warriors dominated the Western Conference from 2015 to 2019. While they are currently in the title race, ESPN writer Brian Windhorst believes big changes are coming.
Several franchises are looking to make their mark in the West, with one of them being the Dallas Mavericks. Although they have had glory days under Dirk Nowitzki, they have not been one of the top teams since 2011.
However, Windhorst believes that is about to change with Luka Doncic leading the charge. They are currently in the conference finals, a big leap for a team that has not gone past the first round in the last decade.
On ESPN's First Take, Windhorst talked about how the Warriors have put together a good blend of young and veteran players to stay competitive. However, he believes it is Luka's league moving forward.
"I really am believing that's going to be Luka Doncic's league. And so you give the Mavericks another transaction cycle or two plus guys who are going to want to go play there with him. Their upside is great.
"The reality of the short and middle term of the Western Conference is the reason why Phoenix's loss was so devastating because this was a year where that team which has an older star in Chris Paul might have been able to shoot the gap so to speak."
Windhorst went on to mention the changes other teams are making. He pointed out that the LA Lakers might be left behind even though they have LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
"If you're a Laker fan, you got to feel a little sick to your stomach because the Lakers, as they look at the overall talent out there that they're gonna have to fight with and what they've got, they don't have anything like that the reinforcements even though they've gotten LeBron and Anthony Davis.
"So, the Western Conference this year I would say is maybe in a little bit of a down cycle, but about to ramp up big time. And the good news for the Warriors is they can compete, now and into the short term future."
Regardless of the changes coming, the Warriors seem to be perfectly placed to stay competitive. The Lakers' primary goal every season is to be championship contenders, meaning they will undoubtedly attempt changes that will make them remain contenders.
The LA Lakers has been the best Western Conference team in league history
Although the Lakers have not dominated the West in the 21st century, they are by far the best team to ever come out of the West.
Winning the 2020 NBA championship brought them level with the Eastern Conference Boston Celtics. Both franchises now each have 17 championships to their names.
LeBron said he came to the Lakers to win a championship, and did so in 2020, but that remains the goal:
"I want to do it again."
The Warriors have the second-most championships in the West with five. Three of those five came from 2015 to 2018.
While the Lakers are currently undergoing some crisis internally in regards to what to do with their roster, they cannot be written off. They still have one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA, who is still sensational despite being 37.
LeBron has also said that he will not miss the playoffs again in his career. The four-time NBA champ has made the NBA Finals ten times, eight from 2011 to 2018. With that in mind, it is a given that it will more often than not be a championship run with LeBron.