Getty Kevin Durant guarding Russell Westbrook.
With Russell Westbrook joining the Los Angeles Lakers, the first matchup the team has with the Brooklyn Nets will be highly anticipated. Not only do both teams have big threes, but there’s also the rivalry between Westbrook and Kevin Durant. The two former teammates haven’t always been on the best terms since they stopped playing together.
Well, now the two will be playing for arguably the two most exciting teams in the NBA this season. Durant hasn’t directly reacted to the news but we’ve not gotten something close to his thoughts on the new-look Lakers. Cuffs The Legend is a basketball trainer who happens to be friends with LeBron James. He called out an account on Twitter for saying that Marc Gasol was now the Lakers’ best shooter by saying Durant was running it and was scared of the team. The Nets star questioned the claim by saying, “Scared of what cuffs?”
@CuffsTheLegend Scared of what cuffs?
Durant then doubled down on not being scared.
Obviously, Durant isn’t going to go around saying how scared he is of the Lakers but it’s notable that he’d go out of his way to make it clear that he’s not. It’s going to be a fun season.
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Lakers & Nets Complete Opposites
The Nets and Lakers are essentially completely opposite teams right now. The former is an offensive powerhouse that’s got elite shooting to spare but they play no defense. The latter is a defensive juggernaut that may have the worst collection of shooters in the NBA.
The offseason is still young so both teams could make moves that make their rosters slightly different. However, the superstars will dictate how the teams play. If the Lakers and Nets were to matchup in the NBA Finals, it would be fascinating to watch. While the league is starting to favor offense, the last two champions were very good defensive teams. A Lakers vs. Nets matchup would be the ultimate test of which side of the court is more important.
Many Veterans Looking to Join Lakers
The only three players that are guaranteed to be on the Lakers’ roster next season are LeBron, Westbrook and Anthony Davis. The team will have its work cut out for them. Luckily, there will be no shortage of players looking to join the purple and gold.
According to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times, the Lakers will be a popular destination in free agency:
The Lakers need shooting. One name that is coming up is Patty Mills. He can shoot the lights out and would be great off the bench. Wayne Ellington is another shooter who has interest in rejoining the Lakers. Trevor Ariza and Andre Iguodala are veteran wings who are candidates. Carmelo Anthony is interested, just waiting on a call from the Lakers when free agency opens Monday. Guess who might be back for a third time? Yup, Dwight Howard is ready to return and play center. Jeff Green and Goran Dragic also are names to look out for.
Many of the players that Turner listed would be great fits in Los Angeles. There are major concerns regarding the Lakers’ roster right now but there’s still a lot of time left before the roster is finalized.