Lakers Lair Ep. 13: No LeBron, Big Problem

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Los Angeles Lakers
Property of BJ Boyer, Randy King and Basketball Society

It is no secret that the Los Angeles Lakers perform better when LeBron James is on the court. With the king, the Lakers were 20-14. Without him, they are 2-5. In this episode of the Lakers Lair hosts Randy King and BJ Boyer discuss the areas in which the Lakers have struggled as well the hefty asking price for the prized superstar in Anthony Davis.

It is glaringly obvious that the Lakers have failed to meet the hefty demands of winning in the NBA ever since LeBron James and Rajon Rondo ditched their uniforms for street clothes due to injuries. Adding to the losses, one thing that has plagued the Lakers all season has been the issues at the free throw line.

The Lakers rank dead last in free-throw percentage (68.6%) and have created a lot of concern for Lakers fans whenever a member of the purple and gold step to the line.

“the end of games when the Lakers put out line-ups like LONZO Ball, Brandon Ingram, kyle Kuzma, Javale mcgee, KCP or Josh Hart, you got three guys that can’t shoot free-throws.” – BJ Boyer

The woes from the charity stripe continued in the Lakers last five games, as they shot a combined 62.9%. The margin of error is so small in the Western Conference and in order for the Lakers to stay relevant as a playoff contender, a more concerted effort needs to be made at the free-throw line.

One player who hasn’t had these struggles from the line is Anthony Davis. As hungry as the Lakers have been to win and win now, more and more pressure is building for the Lakers to pull the trigger on a trade and send the big man to Tinseltown.

The only drawback to doing so would be the asking price for Davis, which according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin is Brandom Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, AND Josh Hart. Lakers Lair host King, discusses whether or not Davis is worth trading those four young players

“I wouldn’t pull the trigger on this trade, you would be gutting this roster and gutting the last couple of drafts in the hopes that Davis and LeBron can win you a championship.” – Randy King

I mean how can you trade away this?

And this.

https://twitter.com/LakersLair/status/1082472613442670592

Shifting focus to an already existing superstar for the Lakers in James, and determining if his absence is the deciding factor in whether or not the Lakers will be playing in the post-season. The Lakers haven’t made the playoffs since the 2012-2013 season whereas James has only missed the post-season twice with those being his first two seasons in the NBA.

So, are the Lakers a playoff team without their best player?

“At the end of the day, it starts and ends with lebron. If lebron isn’t lebron if he is not the best player in the world we’re going to fall short of our goal.” – BJ Boyer

“The lakers are definately not a playoff team without lebron james and i think everyone knows that.” – Randy King

Several more soundbites and conversations were had in this episode. The Lakers take the floor again Wednesday night when the Detroit Pistons come into town, let’s see if they can pick up their second consecutive win.  But before any of that, grab a seat, and welcome inside of the Lakers Lair. Enjoy!

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