Now, the trilogy battle against the Rockets is a watershed moment for the Lakers this season.
Very illustrative :Vanderbilt is back from injury
With the return of "Van der Biao" and Reddish, the Lakers have enough defensive resources to "pinch" the opponent's arrowhead.
In fact, yesRockets, Suns and PelicansThe Lakers can limit opponents to 95 points in three games4 points, which is the existence of the first in the league in the same period. At the same time, it is also the only team in the league that has conceded no more than 100 points.
In other words, with Vanderbilt's return from injury, the Lakers, who are almost fully fit, have a sense of déjà vu after 20 years of championship seasonIt's both targeted and oppressive
Still against the Rockets, the Lakers' offensive efficiency over the same period was 1142, 15th in the league. In contrast, it's even worse than the 122 of the bull in the middle of the storm3。
In other words, even if they are almost full, the Lakers still have deficiencies in offense.
Explanation point 1: Attacking。So far this season, except for James, the Lakers have not averaged more than 8 per game0 times of the player. One more word,James averaged breakouts per gametimes, hit rate
Explanation point 2: Assisted power。So far this season, the Lakers have played 17 players, of which only Reaves and James have received less than 50% of the help. In other words, most of the players' offensive finishes are dominated by "eating cakes".
To sum up the above two points, the Lakers lack attackers, to be precise, players who can lead the team to attack when James is off the court.
When the defense has shown great dominance and the Lakers want to win the championship, then this offense must be solved. The good thing for the Lakers is that there is Russell as a player who can be used for reinforcements.
Note 1: Contracts。In the offseason, Russell and the Lakers signed a 1+1 contract with an average salary of 18.5 million.
Explanation point 2: that is, combat power。So far this season, Russell is averaging 166 points 63 assists.
To sum up, Russell still has some trade value, especially for teams that are preparing to restructure or even rebuild their roster.
Now there is a good reinforcement for the Lakers.
Because of the poor record, especially if Lillard has switched to the Bucks, it is a matter of time before the Trail Blazers rebuild. Based on that, the Lakers can have their eyes on Grant, and I think the Lakers are very likely to get the latter.
Reason 1: Contract。Grant has 5 years left 1A 600 million contract is a big burden for a rebuilding team. And Russell could free up salary space as soon as next summer.
Reason 2: Attractiveness。Unlike the Trail Blazers, the Lakers have the possibility of winning the championship, which is one of them. Second, compared to other teams, the Lakers lack a striker like Grant, in other words, a chance
To sum up, the Lakers are very likely to get Grant under the attraction of the team and the players. Of course, that's thanks to Lillard's help. To be precise, the latter facilitates the Trail Blazers' rebuild, giving the Lakers a chance to acquire Grant.
Get Grant, and the Lakers will not lose to the Nuggets. Very importantly, the Lakers' defense is already top-notch, and now there is another 20+ giant, so the offense and defense are top-notch.