“Who the hell are these people playing with LeBron and Anthony Davis?!” - NBA analyst says quality of LA Lakers beyond LeBron James and AD begs disbelief
Analyst Rich Eisen bashed the LA Lakers' front office for putting a subpar roster around the superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Eisen has questioned the quality of the role players and said how the team's construction shows the incompetency of the front office.
Media scrutiny surrounding the Lakers has been at an all-time high recently, but most of it has been targeted at maligned superstar Russell Westbrook. Westbrook has looked like a shell of his former shelf. But when the Westbrook-less LA Lakers lost 110-99 to the Denver Nuggets, it became crystal clear to the NBA universe that the roster is not good enough to compete with the league's best teams.
Eisen stated the following about Russell Westbrook and his weird situation in the team.
"I'm watching this Laker team," Eisen said. "Russ is out, so you can't blame him. I mean, only you can blame him. He's not playing. He should be playing, and when he's playing, he'd be shooting. And when he's shooting, you know he should be passing. And when he's passing, you should be benched."
Rich Eisen said the Lakers' roster looks like a disaster and the front office's incompetence has put the season in jeopardy.
"I'm watching the Lakers, and I'm thinking to myself, 'Who the hell are these people playing with LeBron and Anthony Davis? Who are they? Who are they? I know they're NBA players, but seriously, like, this is all you came up with in the offseason? This is your answer? That's what I'm thinking of."
Russell Westbrook might not be traded soon?
The LA Lakers might hold on to Russell Westbrook for a little bit longer. According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the trades surrounding Westbrook might only come to fruition after Thanksgiving. On ESPN's "NBA Countdown," Wojnarowski said:
“I’m told to expect Rob Pelinka and the Lakers to wait until post-Thanksgiving, 20 games into the season. And see what teams may start pivoting, who don’t start off well, who decide that they may start to unload players and perhaps get involved in the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes.”
The LA Lakers desperately need to add shooting and wing defenders. Many believe the only way to improve this team is by trading Russ.
General Manager Rob Pelinka will be under massive scrutiny as the Lakers seem to have a horrible lineup. The Lakers have the worst offensive rating in basketball right now and the team has shot the worst from 3-point range in a four-game stretch than anyone in league history.
LA Lakers face tough schedule ahead
The LA Lakers face an even tougher schedule ahead. LeBron James and company will face many playoff-caliber teams in the upcoming games. The LA Lakers will play young and hungry teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves (3-2), New Orleans Pelicans (3-1), Cleveland Cavaliers (3-1) and Denver Nuggets (3-2).
The Lakers need their role players to shoot well if they are to have any chance of winning any of their upcoming games. With a tough schedule and an embarrassment of a roster, things are not looking good in Lakerland right now.