Buying or Selling Lakers' Biggest Concerns Entering December
The Los Angeles Lakers are quickly approaching the quarter mark of their 2022-23 NBA season, and not much of anything has gone according to plan so far.
LeBron James and Anthony Davis have both tussled with the injury bug, Russell Westbrook lost his starting spot, and the offense has been a disaster.
The Lakers carried a 7-12 record into Wednesday night, having blown a 17-point lead over the final 10 minutes of a game against an Indiana Pacers team that is, presumably, in the middle of a big rebuilding project.
Other than that, though, everything is fine.
It is sort of early still, at least, so there's a chance that not all of these issues will last. Let's dive deeper into the biggest concerns to see whether they're long-term worries or not.
Russell Westbrook Doesn't Fit
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This is less of an early-season theme than the soundtrack to the past season-plus of L.A.'s struggles.
No, Russell Westbrook isn't the root cause of this club's problems, but he was a poor fit on paper and has often looked even worse in practice.
The 34-year-old has fared better off the bench, but if the best way to handle a $47.1 million player is limiting his workload and separating him from your stars, something is clearly wrong.
There isn't an ideal solution to this problem, either.
Keeping him around means keeping the payroll way off balance and leaving the Lakers exposed to shaky shooting and spotty decision-making.
Conversely, trading him might require sacrificing at least one potentially massively valuable first-round pick to incentivize anyone to take him off their hands.
Verdict: Buy. He works better off the bench, but that just highlights how poorly he fits with L.A.'s stars.
There Isn't Enough Shooting
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It took LeBron James all of one game to diagnose this issue.
After the Lakers shot just 10-of-40 and were outscored 48-30 from three-point range on opening night, the 37-year-old effectively informed fans to brace themselves for more bricklaying ahead.
"Being completely honest, we're not a team that's constructed of great shooting," James told reporters. "That's just the truth of the matter. It's not like we're sitting here with a lot of lasers on our team."
James, Anthony Davis and Patrick Beverley are all shooting below 30 percent from three. Austin Reaves and Lonnie Walker IV are the only regulars clearing 34 percent.
As a team, the Lakers have fared better in November than they did in October, but that isn't saying much since they only rank 27th in average makes and 19th in percentage this month.
Verdict: Easy buy. The dearth of shooting on this roster is astounding.
This Team Can't Trade Its Way into Significant Success
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One of two things is holding up a blockbuster trade for the Lakers. Either the right player hasn't become available yet, or the front office doesn't see this club trading its way to a high enough ceiling to justify the cost.
While the latter idea has ample support, the former feels more reasonable for now.
Davis is playing as if he's finally ready to grab the reins for this group, and James could be even better if he's no longer forced to shoulder the heaviest load every night. Throw in some intriguing role players such as Walker, Reaves and Thomas Bryant, and this roster isn't in bad shape.
Broker a big deal for an impact player or a few high-level support players, and this club could have enough to compete for a playoff spot.
Get a ticket to the big dance, and the Lakers would have at least a puncher's chance in any series if James and Davis are healthy and surrounded by the right supporting cast.
Verdict: Optimistically sell. Those future firsts are massively valuable, and the Lakers really only need reliable role players to make this work around James and Davis.
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