News Analysis: It’s a big month for the Lakers as trade deadline looms

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The Lakers appear poised to stay the course with Anthony Davis and LeBron James without adding a third star to the team before the trade deadline. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Forget good. The Lakers want to be great.

That was coach JJ Redick’s halftime message Friday night to the Lakers, his frustration with the team’s lack of attention to defensive details boiling over first into a couple of rage-induced timeouts and later into a challenge to his group to be better.

The timing, which came with the Lakers leading a game they’d eventually win 119-102 against Atlanta, indicates something that’s been percolating behind the scenes over the last month, that the Lakers might actually be on to something worth investing in.

Since the team moved Max Christie into the starting lineup on Dec. 8, the Lakers are 8-3. They’re sixth in the NBA in defensive efficiency during that stretch. Over the last seven games, their offense has awoken. And their acquisition of Dorian Finney-Smith, one of the premier role players available on the trade market, not only gives clues to the type of team they’re trying to build, but also cleared a runway for Austin Reaves to try to become the team’s third star.

All of it has sort of uncluttered things for Redick, general manager and vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka and the organization. With a month until the NBA trade deadline and a favorable schedule, the next move has people around the league curious about what direction the Lakers will go in the build to the Feb. 6 trade deadline.

Instead of frantically hunting for a third star or pushing chips in on a starting-caliber center, the Lakers, rival executives believe, will move in different ways than it might’ve seemed earlier this season.

The emergence of third-year guard Max Christie (12) as a starter has allowed Austin Reaves (14) to become more of a third weapon on offense. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Christie has given the Lakers the kind of defensive speed and shooting they wanted in their backcourt, playing himself out of any marginal trade conversations. And the Lakers’ resistance to a third…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/news-analysis-big-month-lakers-120041271.html

Author : LA Times

Publish date : 2025-01-05 12:00:00

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