The s are beneath the microscope greater than some other NBA crew, however the highlight consistently being on them doesn’t imply there aren’t any misconceptions in regards to the group. The Athletic’s Lakers insider Dan Woike hosted a A on Thursday, the place he shared some issues the general public might need gotten mistaken in regards to the crew.
“We’re occurring 12 months two or so of Austin Reaves being essentially the most vocal chief,” Woike wrote. “Luka Doncic is fairly quiet, LeBron James is far more of a lead-by-example participant. And even earlier than the Luka deal, Reaves was the man who had bridged the hole between the again of the bench, the crew’s stars, and the coaches. He was essentially the most approachable and has been a crucial behind-the-scenes presence.”
You’d have anticipated s to grow to be a vocal chief now that he’s the unquestioned second possibility behind c after s‘ departure. Woike, although, shares that Reaves was the one speaking even when he was clearly the third-best participant behind LeBron and s. Given he arrived as an undrafted free agent in 2021, it’s unimaginable how shortly he earned respect in that locker room.
e, and he made it clear he isn’t the sort to scream at folks. The 28-year-old doesn’t attempt to embarrass anybody, however tries to offer his enter to everybody on the crew.
With Doncic apparently not being the talkative sort, it’s ultimate for the Lakers that Reaves is snug in that position. Now, whereas these two will definitely preserve shining on the courtroom in 2026-27, we will’t fairly say the identical about s.
n. The 22-year-old is averaging 2.8 factors, 2.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.3 blocks per recreation, whereas taking pictures simply 26.7% from the sphere and 14.3% from past the arc.
Bronny, the No. 55 decide within the 2024 NBA Draft, confirmed progress as a sophomore, however these struggles have once more led to questions on his future with the Lakers. Whereas there have been requires the crew to maneuver on, m.
“The idea in Bronny James the particular person/participant is real,” Woike wrote. “In fact the Lakers knew drafting him would make LeBron pleased, however they’ve all the time been intrigued by his athleticism and size (regardless of his dimension), and since he’s been within the constructing, they’ve raved about his work ethic and the way he handles all of the craziness that comes with being LeBron James Jr.”
Bronny definitely has dealt with that half nicely. He hasn’t let the nepotism allegations get to him, however he has to play higher than this.
Bronny may not be at risk of being shipped out of city proper now, however he has to maintain exhibiting progress to stick with the Lakers long run. Whereas he isn’t going anyplace simply but, fellow 2024 draft decide t could be.
The Lakers have to trim their roster from 16 to fifteen, and r now. The deadline for them to chop down the roster is Oct. 19, and if no commerce materializes, they should waive somebody. That will principally be Knecht and Woike defined why issues haven’t labored out in Los Angeles for the No. 17 decide within the 2024 NBA Draft.
“The largest concern with Dalton Knecht hasn’t been taking pictures and hasn’t been defensive effort,” Woike wrote. “It’s been processing. The way in which one scout put it to me that’s caught with me – Knecht’s on-court IQ isn’t robust sufficient for him to only assume the sport, and he’s not instinctual sufficient to only go play freely.
“Clearly, he’s been in a tricky spot with the org. for the reason that Mark Williams deal, and nearly everybody agrees that if it’s going to occur for him, it’ll should be elsewhere,” Woike added.
Knecht was headed to the s in February 2025 as a part of the package deal for s, however the e. They’d considerations concerning Williams’ well being and determined he wasn’t definitely worth the threat. This did imply, nevertheless, that Knecht was again with a crew he knew had simply tried to ship him out. To say that isn’t ultimate can be an understatement.
We haven’t even seen glimpses of the promise Knecht confirmed in his early days as a Laker for fairly a while now, and Woike shared that each side have grievances.
“I can’t communicate to what his mindset is apart from I do know he needs he had extra alternative and I do know the teaching employees needs he performed with extra power and urgency when he will get his possibilities in recreation,” Woike wrote.
A parting of the way might be for the most effective, and the s. Right here’s hoping he is ready to revive his profession elsewhere.
As for the opposite man on the commerce block, transferring t has confirmed difficult for years due to his contract. He’s coming into the third 12 months of a four-year, $48 million deal, and the Lakers’ choice handy him this contract is likely one of the larger errors they’ve made.
Vanderbilt is a tremendous defender however is a non-factor on offense. The 27-year-old is notably a poor three-point shooter (29.3% in 2025-26), and that’s what Woike pointed to as the difficulty.
“The contract is seen very negatively across the league, and it’s simply actually troublesome for gamers to discover a spot in JJ Redick’s offense when you can’t be a reputable taking pictures menace,” Woike wrote.
Vanderbilt has a participant possibility for 2027-28, which he’s nearly definitely selecting up. The Lakers would possibly solely be capable to transfer him in a 12 months or so when he’ll be on an expiring contract.
Now, Vanderbilt hasn’t gotten a whole lot of enjoying time beneath okay, and we would see even much less of him in 2026-27. The Lakers have introduced in lots of new faces, and Woike defined the crew believes they’ll elevate them defensively.
“They assume they’re going to be fairly aggressive defensively,” Woike wrote. “There’s perception in [Matisse] Thybulle, [Ziaire Williams], [Quentin] Grimes, and [Jake] LaRavia as half-court defensive gamers, they usually assume [Collin] Sexton could be a menace over 94 ft (they’re going to strain loads),” Woike wrote. “We’ll see how they maintain up bodily to this, however with Walker Kessler because the anchor, they assume the considerations on that facet of the ball are somewhat overblown.”
The Lakers are anticipated to be nice offensively and wrestle defensively. That’s the reason they aren’t seen as title contenders, however they clearly appear to imagine they’ll be higher defensively than the critics assume. Time will inform which facet is true.
