Have the Los Angeles Lakers done enough to assemble a championship-contending roster? There has been plenty of chatter surrounding the Lakers and the decisions they’ve made, starting with allowing LeBron James to walk away and almost completely revamping the roster around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
“The Lakers might have been the busiest team of the summer,” ESPN’s Zach Kram wrote. “But did all that activity make them better, or were they merely running in place? In came (Walker) Kessler, (Sandro) Mamukelashvili, (Quentin) Grimes, (Collin) Sexton, (Kevon) Looney, Jaden Hardy, (Matisse) Thybulle and (Ziaire) Williams. Out went James, (Rui) Hachimura, (Marcus) Smart, (Luke) Kennard, (Deandre) Ayton and (Jaxson) Hayes. … The Lakers mostly did well with depth signings such as Thybulle and Williams. But it’s hard to overcome not replacing James’ production, even in his 40s. They have less flexibility now, and it’s hard to say with confidence that they’re any closer to title contention.”
But that confidence will be determined later. Right now, all we can do is assess whether the pieces the Lakers have put around Doncic will help maximize their 27-year-old superstar.
New Lakers Signing Could Be a Problem Late in Games
And unfortunately, it’s not a “problem” as in giving the opposing team buckets and playing suffocating defense.
According to team insider Jovan Buha, the Lakers may struggle to play the newly-signed Sexton late in games due to the defensive limitations of a three-guard lineup featuring Doncic and Reaves.
“I think this has been my biggest gripe with the Lakers roster construction,” Buha said. “I see the value and importance of having a good backup point guard, and the Lakers clearly checked that box and addressed that need. At the same time, due to Sexton’s defensive limitations, I think there is a limitation to how much he can play with Austin and Luka. And because of that, I don’t think he can close games at the highest level, and I don’t think he can play that much against OKC and San Antonio and New York and teams of that caliber come playoff time.”
Sexton, 27, was brought in to provide the Lakers a reliable table-setter to back up Doncic. Outside of L.A.’s All-NBA guard, perhaps Sexton is the only other point guard on the roster capable of intiating offense. But Buha believes Sexton would be better served in a reduced role.
“Maybe he’s more of a 16 to 18 minute-a-night guy instead of being a 24 to 26 minute-a-night guy like he is in the regular season,” Buha expressed. “And because of that, I just would’ve rather invested that in a player who would be able to potentially close those games next to Austin and Luka and a player who could complement those guys a bit better than Sexton. Sexton fills a need, but I don’t think he necessarily complements the best players. Sure, he gives you great insurance if one of those are out.”
Should L.A. Have Looked Elsewhere?
Statiscally, Sexton has been bonafide All-Star level in the past; he averaged over 24 points and four assists per game for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2020-21 season. Last season, he averaged 14.2 points and 3.7 assists per game for the Charlotte Hornets.
Would there have been as many questions with the Lakers roster if they handed a multiyear contract to a starting-level power forward instead of Sexton? That’s debateable.
“I understand the argument of Sexton gives you insurance … you could probably pencil in 10 to 15 missed games for Luka and Austin; Sexton will help in that scenario,” Buha said. “But ultimately the Lakers’ ceiling caves here, and that’s what we cared about is the Lakers upside and their ceiling. That will be determined by the availability of Luka and Austin.”
Sexton is a potentially high-impact player because of his versatility, but what he brings to the table may be somewhat marginalized if L.A. has glaring struggles in other areas of the roster.
Lakers Star Expected to Be Pushed Aside Late Due to ‘Defensive Limitations’