Los Angeles Lakers have been among the best teams in the current offseason. They had a lot of issues to fix, heading toward free agency. Among the top priorities were Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, and D’Angelo Russell. They were all heading towards free agency. But Rob Pelinka believes in keeping the core together. It is because, before the trade deadline in February, the front office did a remarkable job. They traded Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverley, and so on in the second month of the year.
In exchange, they got players like D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt, Mo Bamba, Malik Beasley, and so on. As a result, the Los Angeles Lakers got much-needed balance and stability in the roster. Later this team was able to reach the conference finals. Rob Pelinka and the rest of the front office have increased strength after acquiring Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, and Cam Reddish. That is why the Los Angeles side believes they can win eight more games in 2024 than they did last season.
Lakers Believe They Can Win More Than 50 Games In 2023-24 Season
The LA side was the seventh seed of the West with a 43-39 win-loss record. According to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, the 17-time champions of the West think they can win eight more games in the 2023-24 season. But they are not the only ones with such belief. Experts and fans are optimistic that the Lakers can go deeper than they did last season if LeBron James and Anthony Davis stay perfectly healthy. If the Los Angeles side can win ten more games in the regular season, they will end up with a 51-31 win-loss record. Moreover, the second seed of the Western Conference last season Memphis Grizzlies had the same record in the regular season. But the Lakers shocked everybody, including their fans.
But the Denver Nuggets cut short their miraculous turnaround in the Western Conference Finals. However, the Laker’s front office believes in the core group of players. They hope that these players can lead the Purple and Gold army to their 18th title. Then the Lakers would be the first team to win 18 championships. Vincent came from the Miami Heat, who had been the runner’s up in the 2022-23 season. Reddish has been in talks to join the Lakers for a very long time. Finally, he became a Laker this year. But the Lakers got Taurean Prince for a good deal. They have a big man, young Jaxson Hayes, who can help Anthony Davis a lot next season. Hence, the Lakers look pretty balanced.
Top Highest Paid Players In The LA Side Over The Years
On the other hand, the Lakers have seen top players of the league represent them over the years. Recently, Hoops Hype presented a list of the top ten highest-paid Lakers players ever. Obviously, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, and LeBron James made the top ten. However, there were some unexpected names as well.
For instance, Loul Deng, Kentavius Caldwell-Pope, Pau Gasol, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook are among the few more highest-paid Lakers players ever. Los Angeles Lakers may not pay so much money for other role players anymore. But they will keep investing in the star players in the years to come.