Via Lake Show Life
Key Players: Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, Brook Lopez
It was a nice run; Warriors and LeBron fans you've been relieved of your duty as the league's most annoying fanbases. The Laker fans are back and they have a lot to fanboy over. For starters, Showtime is back. Jeanie Buss, the Lakers' controlling owner, fired her brother Jim Buss and brought in Magic Johnson to run the point as the teams' President of Basketball Operations. Magic then added big-name former agent Rob Pelinka as General Manager, and the rest is history.
The duo of Magic-Pelinka had one of the best offseasons a rebuilding team can have--minus the tampering charges. Los Angeles managed to dump the $64 million contract of Timofey Mozgov on the Brooklyn Nets, by pairing him with 2015's second overall pick D'Angelo Russell. With Russell in Brooklyn, LaVar Ball's once-ridiculous prophecy came into fruition. The Lakers selected LaVar's prodigal son, Lonzo Ball, with the second overall pick and wasted no time naming him the face of the organization; Magic Johnson made his expectations clear stating," we expect a Ball jersey there( in the rafters) soon."
Other major Lakers' additions include Brook Lopez(Nets' trade), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope(free agency), and emerging fan favorite Kyle Kuzma(draft).
Best Case Scenario
` Via LakersNation
Let LaVar tell it, the Lakers are winning 50 games this season, making the playoffs, and Lonzo is winning MVP as a rookie; so let's go ahead and not let LaVar tell it.
Truthfully, two players determine how the entire Lakers' season will be viewed. Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram have the talent to anchor the next great Los Angeles dynasty, showing that talent should be what they're judged on--not wins. In Russell Westbrook's rookie season and Kevin Durant's second season, Oklahoma City lost 59 games, but while losing Durant averaged 25 points and 6 rebounds while Westbrook averaged a baby-Westbrook stat line of 15/5/5. The next season Oklahoma City went on to almost flip their record from 23-59 to 50-32. It would be unfair to expect the same results from Ball and Ingram, but it's certainly not outlandish to expect something similar.
Lonzo Ball already showed flashes of brilliance, breaking the Summer League assists record and winning the league's MVP. Meanwhile, Brandon Ingram has shown clear improvements in both his strength and scoring ability. If both Ball and Ingram can bring those flashes into the regular season Laker nation will have a lot to cheer about.
Worst Case Scenario
Via Las Vegas Review-Journal
Is there such a thing as too much LaVar? Simply put, yes. LaVar has forced Chino Hills to have three coaches in as many years, despite 30+ win seasons and a state championship, he publicly called out Lonzo's teammates after UCLA's tournament loss, and recently pulled youngest son LaMelo out of Chino Hills days after requesting they bring in more players. Too much LaVar is definitely a thing, but impressive play from Lonzo can always make his dad's antics more tolerable.
Much like the Lakers' best case scenario, the Lakers' worst case scenario is strictly dependent on the irreplaceable duo of Ball and Ingram. Ball's funky shot could prove critics right and his career could steer more in the direction of Ricky Rubio rather than Jason Kidd. Ingram's worst case is playing like his 9.4 points per game last season self. Ball and/or Ingram failing to deliver regularly would dim the lights on Showtime and the Lakers' season.
Prediction: 30-52