NBA Rumors: Los Angeles Lakers Must Land J.R. Smith for Title Run

The Los Angeles Lakers can’t win an NBA title this season without giving Kobe Bryant help in the backcourt. The Lakers are 14-10 on the season, and Bryant is scoring nearly one-third of their points per game.

If the Lakers want to contend for the NBA title, they must sign J.R. Smith when his season is over for his club, the Zhejiang Golden Bulls in China.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports says that the Lakers are interested in Smith's services.

Smith would be able to return during the All-Star weekend on Feb. 25-26.

The Lakers need to get younger and more explosive in their backcourt. They needed to address it before the season, but it was overlooked. Better late than never, right?

Derek Fisher (37), Kobe Bryant (33), Metta World Peace (32), Matt Barnes (31) and Steve Blake (31) are the oldest on the team—they are all guards or small forwards. 

Los Angeles needs to upgrade their roster with youth and talent. Smith provides great athleticism and quickness, and he is still only 26 years old. He scored 12.3 points, 2.2 assists and 4.1 rebounds last season with the Denver Nuggets.

Andrew Goudelock could become a nice player in the future, but wouldn’t you feel a little more confident with Smith? Goudelock averages 4.6 points while shooting 39.3 percent from the perimeter. Smith averaged 39 percent from beyond the three-point line last season.

The answer is obvious. Smith gives you more experience, explosiveness, excitement and scoring ability than anybody else on the Lakers' roster not named Kobe Bryant.

The Lakers need to score at a better clip—they average 93.3 points per game, 20th in the NBA. Bryant can’t be the only one capable of scoring consistently from the perimeter. Steve Blake is the second-leading scorer that plays in the backcourt, and he’s averaging 7.3 points per game in only 12 games played.

Fisher has started 24 games and has scored just 5.3 points per game, Barnes has started 16 and has averaged 7.0 and World Peace has started four and averaged 4.9 points.

That’s not good enough if the Lakers want to win another NBA Championship.

In a shortened season with an older group in the backcourt, having depth can win you games when you are playing in back-to-back situations. Not only would Smith help in that area, but he would instantly give them another option capable of lighting up the scoreboard.

Smith gives the Lakers the best chance to legitimately compete for a title this season. If they don't sign him, you can forget about the Lakers being in the conversation.