Getty Zion Williamson #1 of the Duke Blue Devils shoots the ball against the UCF Knights during the second half in the second round game of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.
With the Lakers’ 115-100 loss at Utah Wednesday night, Los Angeles will finish below .500 for the fifth straight season. That piles on to the embarrassment of missing the playoffs again despite the addition of LeBron James last summer. It has restless Lakers fans in a tizzy.
Some analysts have talked about the benefits of tanking to increase the chances of landing the top pick in this summer’s NBA Draft. Whoever has the No. 1 selection is likely to take Duke superstar freshman Zion Williamson.
With this in mind, a Laker fan approached former Celtics great Paul Pierce Wednesday night, asking if Zion was the answer to the franchise’s problems. Per video acquired by TMZ Sports, Pierce stated there’s “a lot” to fix beyond Zion.
“You all need a lot. A lot,” Pierce said to the unidentified fan taking the video. “Zion is not the savior, but he’s very good. You all need more than that.”
When the fan asked about jettisoning James for a roster overhaul, Pierce cracked a joke.
“No. LeBron is doing very well with his production company,” he said laughing as he closed his car door.
The chances Los Angeles could even get Williamson are incredibly slim. After this week’s win over the Wizards, our own Anthony Koon laid out the NBA Draft lottery probabilities.
Heading into the night (per Tankathon) the Lakers had a 1.2% chance to land the 12th pick, 19% chance to land the 11th pick, and an overwhelming 65% chance to land the 10th pick. The Lakers also possessed a 3% chance to jump into the top of the lottery and land the top pick while they had a 3.3% chance to land the second, 3.6% chance to snag the third pick, and 4% chance to move up to the fourth pick.
Now tied with the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Lakers would drastically decrease their NBA Draft Lottery chances by moving up ahead of the Timberwolves and almost certainly cement themselves with a pick outside of the top 10. If the Lakers can hold their current positioning, they will likely find themselves with the 10th overall pick and an outside shot of landing something in the top four thanks to the NBA Draft Lottery.
One suggestion made Thursday was from ESPN First Take analyst Stephen A. Smith. A vocal critic of James and the Lakers this season, Smith suggested Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka make a run at Kevin Durant.
“I don’t think he’s going to get him, but if I’m LeBron James and I had to pick anybody out there,” Smith said to Max Kellerman, “Klay (Thompson), Kawhi (Leonard), Kemba (Walker), Kyrie (Irving), it don’t matter. The No. 1 person you want is K.D. for a multitude of reasons.
“The offensive arsenal that Kevin Durant brings to the equation, particularly as a perimeter shooter, you can’t deny that. It’s incredibly complimentary to the skillset of the playmaker that is LeBron.”
Durant is averaging 26.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game. His defense has even improved, as he swats a shot per game on average. I talked earlier today about the slashes to the roster necessary for this move, which would require around $30-$32 million in available cash.
I projected the Lakers to cut Kentavious Caldwell-Pope ($12 million), Rajon Rondo ($9 million), Lance Stephenson ($4.49 million), Reggie Bullock ($2.5 million), JaVale McGee ($1.5 million) and Tyson Chandler ($1.3 million). This would give just enough room for Durant, but little to no room for anyone else.
Between Hail Mary prayers to get Zion and mega-deals for Durant, Los Angeles, and especially its fans, are itching for any way to return to glory.