The Los Angeles Lakers remain one of the top NBA stories after a polarizing offseason leads to mixed opinions. Some pundits believe the Lakers declined big time and will take a huge drop off this season. Others see the vision of a roster built for Luka Doncic that will experience strong success. Charles Barkley was down the middle and made a unique comment that appealed to both sides.
An appearance on the Bill Simmons Podcast saw Barkley sharing the following pros and cons to the Lakers:
“I really want to see the Lakers do well. First of all, I’m a big Luka fan, a big Austin Reaves fan. I think they’re gonna be better than people realize. Luka and Kyrie took the Mavs to the Finals, come on, man. This team is probably better; this team is probably just as good as that team.
They’re going to be fine, I think. Are they gonna win the championship? I don’t think they’re going to win the championship. But the league is better when the Boston Celtics, the Lakers, and the Knicks are good teams.”
Barkley shared that he expects the Lakers to do a lot better than most pundits are predicting with a successful regular season. However, the good news ends there as Barkley also revealed he doesn’t see the Lakers contending for a title due to the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder being far better.
Charles Barkley’s Positive Comment Provides Hope
One of the most interesting things about Barkley’s quotes is that he believes this Lakers team is as good as the 2024 Dallas Mavericks squad that made the NBA Finals. Lakers GM Rob Pelinka had that in mind when building a similar roster to play to Luka’s strengths.
However, a concern could be that Kyrie Irving was playing at a high level that Reaves will have to prove as the new Doncic lead co-star. Barkley expects the Lakers to easily make the top six playoff seeds and implied they could even have home court in the first round.
A lot needs to work in the Lakers favor, especially center Walker Kessler panning out to warrant getting paid big money and losing first round draft picks for him. New role players Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton must also step up to make up for the offense lost without LeBron James and others gone from last season.
Charles Barkley’s Negative Comment Reminds Us Of Reality
The overall goal of contending for an NBA Championship remains hard to follow. San Antonio and Oklahoma City neutralize the Lakers’ advantage of having Doncic since they also have superstars Victor Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Other West teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets have higher ceilings due to their depth and previous success. The Lakers will need a dream season to give fans any hope of hanging another banner.
A smart move would be to play the season out and make big changes next summer if it becomes apparent this roster can’t contend. Figuring out which talents fit with Luka will set the Lakers up for future success by getting rid of the others.
Charles Barkley Makes Unique Prediction For Lakers Season