The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t done much this summer, and they’re betting on the improvements of the players they have ahead of the 2024-25 season.
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Los Angeles Lakers are hoping that Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt will be 100 percent healthy this upcoming season, as the two role players (alongside youngsters Dalton Knecht and Max Christie) can give a big boost to the team on both sides of the floor.
“As things stand, the Lakers are preaching patience that the right trade will eventually materialize while betting that healthier versions of Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent, the addition of Knecht, and the promotion of Christie into the rotation will shore up the group’s perimeter defense, athleticism, and shooting,” Buha wrote.
Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt were on the injury list for a huge chunk of last season. Vincent only played 11 regular season games, averaging 3.1 points and 1.9 assists per game, while Vanderbilt averaged 5.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in 29 regular season games.
Continuity is the key for the Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are running it back with essentially the same core that made it to the NBA playoffs in the last two seasons, including a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2022-23.
And they added Dalton Knecht and Bronny James to their roster this summer. If these two youngsters can step up and make an impact right away, then the Los Angeles Lakers should have a good foundation to work with for the foreseeable future.
However, despite this, the Purple and Gold aren’t expected to contend in the brutally tough Western Conference next season, although they have a realistic shot of successfully defending their NBA Cup crown.
