Los Angeles Lakers: ‘The Style of Play Is Stress-Free Basketball’

LOS ANGELES — Few leagues can match the NBA when it comes to drama, and there has been no shortage of that over the last few months. Many of the main contenders have spent the preseason navigating tense storylines, whether it be working in a new coach (Bucks, Sixers, Suns), adjusting to major trades (Bucks, Celtics, Warriors, Suns), anticipating trades that might happen (Clippers), stewing about those that didn’t (Heat), or managing a malcontented superstar (Sixers).

Here in the heart of Hollywood, one might expect that the league’s most glamorous franchise would deliver spellbinding narratives of its own. Yet, as the Lakers get ready to raise the curtain Tuesday night at the reigning champion Nuggets, the most pressing question hovering over the preseason has been … wait for it … Who will be the fifth starter?

If that were a movie pitch, it would go nowhere. But given the volatility the Lakers have weathered since capturing the 2020 NBA championship — the disastrous Russell Wesbrook trade, failing to make the 2022 playoffs, firing coach Frank Vogel — a heavy dose of boring is a welcome change. 

“All the sideshow crap, all the soap opera stuff, flush that out of the system and put all of your focus and your energy into trying to be great,” says the Lakers’ second-year coach Darvin Ham. “I’ve always believed that a team on the floor is a reflection of its coach, and the overall vibe of the organization is a reflection of its leadership. I’m no nonsense.”

Ham’s first year as a head coach began dismally as the team dropped 10 of its first 12 games, but he maintained his composure and kept the locker room together until GM Rob Pelinka could upgrade the roster before the trade deadline. He did so by dealing Westbrook and Patrick Beverley for D’Angelo Russell (who came from the Timberwolves) and Rui Hachimura (Wizards), among other moves. 

The trades helped, but what really sparked the turnaround was the return to health of the team’s leading men, LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Lakers showed by the end of the season they were of championship caliber. There was no need to call for a big rewrite.

Two players from the playoff rotation, Dennis Schroder and Lonnie Walker IV, left for Toronto and Brooklyn, respectively, but five others — Davis, Austin Reaves, Jarred Vanderbilt, Russell and Hachimura — were re-signed as free agents or agreed to extensions. Pelinka filled out the roster with six veterans and a couple draft picks, but most of those guys will come off the bench, if they play at all. 

New players such as Gabe Vincent, the former Miami Heat guard who reached an agreement with the Lakers on a three-year, $33 million contract just hours after the free agency period opened, were brought in to shore up 3-point shooting and bolster depth. But let’s not get it twisted: This is no ensemble. The Lakers’ chances of claiming their 18th NBA title centers mostly on how their protagonist performs in his 21st season. And that centers mostly on what condition his 39-year-old body will be in when the playoffs commence next April.

When we last saw our hero, James was despondent, dejected and hinting at retirement following the humiliating sweep by the Nuggets. He had looked terrific during the first half of last season, but then he missed 27 games after tearing a tendon in his right foot at Dallas on Feb. 26. He managed to play out the season, but he was clearly hobbled. 

James revealed at this season’s media day that he “pretty much tore the whole tendon” and was cagey about whether he had offseason surgery (which suggests he likely did). James entered training camp proclaiming himself to be in peak health, and he earned hosannas from teammates (Vanderbilt said “he’s moving like a freight train”) and coaches (Ham said “he looks like third- or fourth-year LeBron”). James sounded nothing like a guy who is getting ready to wind down his illustrious career. “I feel like I’ve got a lot more in the tank to give,” he said.

Given James’ age and the fact that he could be a free agent next summer, the start of the season is giving off some serious Last Dance vibes. But this is not an old team. 

Thirteen of the Lakers’ 15 players are under the age of 30, and Davis turned 30 in March. When healthy, Davis is still a dominant player and easily one of the top five defenders in the league. He missed 20 straight games in December and January because of a foot injury, but he still posted career highs in field goal percentage (56.3) and rebounds (12.5) while averaging 25.9 points per game. Locking him up was the No. 1 priority for the Lakers this offseason. They did just that on Aug. 4 when Davis signed a three-year, $186 million extension.

“When AD came up for the extension, Darvin and I had great interactions with him,” Pelinka said. “And the theme was, ‘We want to commit to you, but we want you to commit to us.’ And one of the aspects that we addressed with him in that exchange was becoming a leader and being the hardest worker, and he really did that this offseason.”

Ham has repeatedly insisted that he wants Davis to take more 3-pointers. After one practice, he suggested Davis should hoist six attempts per game, which is ludicrous considering last season Davis attempted just 1.3, his lowest average since 2014-15, and converted 25.7%. Ham later backed off the number, but not the confidence. “I wouldn’t put that on him if I didn’t think he was capable,” he said. “I just want him to be aggressive at all three levels and not hesitate.”

The NBA has become 3-point-centric over the last decade, but even when the Lakers won the 2020 title, they ranked 21st in 3-point percentage and 23rd in attempts. They’ve gotten steadily worse in that department, which is one of many reasons why Pelinka signed Reaves to a four-year, $54 million contract as soon as the free agency period began. Reaves became one of the feel-good stories of the 2022-23 NBA season. He was an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma who in his second NBA season played his way into the rotation, earned a starting spot in late March, and became a key cog during the playoffs.

Between his new contract and his play this summer — he averaged 13.8 points on 50% 3-point shooting for Team USA during the FIBA World Cup — Reaves enters this season with expectations to produce for the first time in a long time. If he’s fazed by his new reality, he’s doing a great job hiding it. “I just play basketball,” he said. “I try to play the right way. I have a lot of really talented guys around me, and coaches as well, so I can just continue to be myself.”

The decision to keep Russell was no layup. The Lakers got better after Russell joined the roster, but his postseason play diminished to the point where Ham had to pull him from the starting lineup in the final game against the Nuggets. Russell’s two-year, $37 million contract includes a player-option after this season, and he and the team agreed to waive his no-trade clause, which they are allowed to do under the league’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement. If the Lakers need to upgrade the position at the trade deadline (Kyrie Irving, anyone?), moving Russell will probably be their best option. In the meantime, Ham stated unequivocally that Russell is the starting point guard, although Reaves will log plenty of minutes there as well.

As for that oh-so-riveting question as to who the fifth starter will be, there are three candidates competing to be the answer. Vanderbilt is the incumbent and started the first preseason game, but he missed the rest of the preseason because of left heel soreness. Taurean Prince, a 6-foot-7 3-and-D wing who signed as a free agent after leaving the Timberwolves, started the remaining five games in Vanderbilt’s place and shot 45.8% from 3. 

The third option is Hachimura. He looked rather pedestrian after he was acquired last season, averaging 9.6 points on 29.6% 3-point shooting during the regular season. But he was a force in the playoffs, averaging 12.2 points per game and making 48.7% from 3. It is unrealistic to think Hachimura can keep up that pace, although he is quick to point out he shot 44.7% from behind the arc during his third season with the Wizards.

After agreeing to a three-year, $51 million contract, Hachimura set out to prove he was worth the investment. At the suggestion of Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy, Hachimura attached himself to James in the offseason, joining him during extensive workouts and spending hours picking his brain. James joked that he felt like Mr. Miyagi from the movie Karate Kid.

Might Wood eventually crack the starting lineup? It’s an intriguing question. On the one hand, he’s exactly what this team needs — a 6-foot-10 floor spacer who has made 37.9% from 3 during his career. On the other hand, there’s a reason (defense) that he’s playing for his eighth team in nine years. Wood waited as long as he could for teams to sweep him off his feet, but in the end he settled for the Lakers’ two-year offer which will earn him the veteran’s minimum of $2.7 million this season. He averaged just 6.8 points on 25% 3-point shooting in the preseason, but if he can upgrade the team’s outside shooting and not get embarrassed too badly defensively as a backup to Davis, he will find himself in the rotation.

“Chris is a really articulate, very thoughtful kid. He thought deeply about the different opportunities he had,” Pelinka said. “There were several contending teams that wanted to add him just because his skills are undeniable … I think Christian, more than anything, believed in our team, our talent, our group of guys, and then Darvin as the coach.”

The Lakers were more aesthetically pleasing to watch during their six preseason games. They shot 36.1% from 3 and assisted on 59.7% of their made field goals. The emphasis on ball movement should minimize the physical toll on James, because it means he won’t have to embark on as many isolation drives. Ham also hopes all that ball-sharing will beget the camaraderie he is looking for. 

“I just want us playing the right way, playing with the pass and allowing each other to shine,” he said. “I've really enjoyed seeing how much fun and how much joy our guys are having playing with one another. The style of play is stress-free basketball.”

No doubt there will be stress to come, especially if James and/or Davis gets hurt again. The upgrade on offense came at a cost to the defense, which haunted this team during the postseason. Still, the Lakers’ management cast a big vote of confidence for the status quo, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed in the locker room. When they tip off in Denver on Tuesday night, the Lakers will set out to produce a true Hollywood rarity — a sequel that’s better than the original. 

“A lot of organizations, that’s their foundation. They keep guys there, bring guys in multiple years and let that grow,” Russell said. “For us to have that with the talent we have, we can beat a lot of teams and win a lot of games. That’s the route Rob took this summer. We don’t want to let him down.”