"Teams are going to be aggressive" - Rob Pelinka says the LA Lakers will not be swayed by other Western Conference contenders
The LA Lakers are looking at a rather interesting offseason ahead of them. However, GM Rob Pelinka has been clear in stating that the team will stick to its plans on how to proceed.
The purple and gold franchise is coming off a fairly impressive season. After a 2-10 start in the regular season, LeBron James and co. scratched and clawed their way into the Western Conference finals.
Although they were swept by the newly-crowned NBA champions, the Denver Nuggets, there were a lot of positive takeaways, particularly with the roster.
One of the best moments of the Lakers' season was at the trade deadline. Having made some significant changes to their roster, the LA Lakers became one of the most successful teams after the All-Star break. This, in itself, gave the team a template to follow heading into the offseason.
In light of the flurry of moves early in the offseason and on draft night, the Lakers have remained comparatively quiet. This has been with good reason as per GM Rob Pelinka.
He shed light on this recently when he said:
"I think if there's ways we can improve the roster, of course we're going to do that. I think probably less focus of, 'Hey, what is Team X or Team Y doing?' And more focus on, 'How can we optimize us?'"
He also added to the sentiment of other teams making moves by saying:
"Teams are going to be aggressive. There's a lot of parity in the league right now, and everyone smells an opportunity to chase the championship, but we're going to try our best to stay in that pack or at the head of that pack."
There is a lot to look forward to in this new Lakers' squad. With fresh draft arrivals in Jordan Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis, fans look forward to seeing how they adapt to the system.
Lakers’ Rob Pelinka on Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis https://t.co/LelucvdBHF
Key moves the LA Lakers need to make
The priority for the LA Lakers is to keep this core intact. While the superstars are locked in regardless, the Lakers have some key players to bring back for next season.
These include D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. Reaves and Hachimura in particular have been rated as priority signings considering the impact they had on the team in the regular season as well as the playoffs.
The LA Lakers displayed a lot of growth with less than half a season under their belts last year. It will be interesting to see what they would be capable of with one whole season together.
OFFICIAL: The Lakers extended qualifying offers to Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves. As a result of the qualifying offers, Hachimura and Reaves become restricted free agents. https://t.co/8jqkyr0TvY