For the primary time in his profession, LeBron James will miss a season opener. The famously sturdy James is reportedly coping with sciatica that ought to sideline him for at the very least 3-4 weeks. As new as a season-opening harm is to James, it is one thing we would must get used to. James is 40. There’s little or no precedent of gamers even staying lively to this age, not to mention performing on the star-caliber stage that James nonetheless did final season. We could not have a lot really, 100% wholesome James basketball left.
That will likely be an issue that performs out for the Lakers over the course of the season. For now, they’ve extra rapid issues, like determining easy methods to survive the start of the season with out one in every of their superstars. So with James now sidelined for a bit, let us take a look at among the ripple results of this harm for the remainder of the Lakers.
1. May this open the door for extra Bronny?
Proper off the bat, the Lakers simply misplaced someplace between 30 and 35 minutes per night time in the beginning of the season with James sidelined. The guard they added this offseason, Marcus Good, is at present coping with Achilles tendinopathy, so there isn’t any telling how a lot he’ll be capable of play because the season begins. To clear the room to convey him in, the Lakers wanted to waive Jordan Goodwin, a rotation guard from final season. Not they may ever absolutely depend on him from a well being perspective, however Maxi Kleber can also be coping with a quadriceps subject. In different phrases, there are seemingly minutes out there early on.
The irony right here is that one LeBron James getting harm may open the door for an additional LeBron James to play. Bronny is clearly a superb deal smaller than his father. They play completely different positions. However the Lakers are comparatively fluid positionally. Their two main ball-handlers in spite of everything are the elder James and Luka Dončić, who’re each forward-sized. Within the occasion that LeBron, Good and Kleber are sidelined, there are eight gamers who would nearly definitely play: Dončić, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent, Deandre Ayton, Jake LaRavia and Jaxson Hayes.
Most groups use 9 or 10 within the common season. Dalton Knecht might be the most important beneficiary, and it will behoove the Lakers to make use of him if solely to spice up his commerce worth. However do not be stunned if the Lakers give Bronny a little bit of run early on simply to see if he can deal with it. His rookie season was fairly uninspiring, however there have been constructive indicators at Summer season League. The Lakers aren’t constructed for Bronny to play actual minutes once they’re wholesome, however that is probably an opportunity to see how a lot he is grown early within the season and work out if he deserves extra probabilities later. After all, with out understanding how effectively he is performed at camp and the way out there Good will likely be, none of that is assured. For all we all know, one of many two-way guards, Nick Smith Jr. or Chris Manon, may have impressed sufficient to garner these early alternatives.
2. Who’s beginning in LeBron’s place?
We got here into camp moderately sure that 4 Lakers would begin: James, Dončić, Reaves and Ayton. The competitors has seemingly been between Good and Hachimura, however Jarred Vanderbilt has a fringe case as effectively. Whereas Good is the extra adorned defender, he is better-suited guarding larger gamers at this stage of his profession. That is much less of a necessity for this Lakers roster, whereas Vanderbilt is healthier at defending guards. He is a worse offensive participant, however, effectively, the Lakers can in all probability afford to spare some scoring.
If Good is wholesome sufficient to start out on opening day, the natural resolution right here could be to only begin each he and Hachimura. Then, when James comes again, the Lakers may use the data from their first batch of video games to make an knowledgeable, long-term resolution. Nonetheless, in the event that they’re nervous about Good defending quick guards, it would make sense to present Vanderbilt an extended look now. Hachimura’s taking pictures might be a should for the offense with no James, so this might be a matter of stylistic desire on protection. Plus, if the Lakers have been leaning in direction of bringing Good off of the bench, sustaining position continuity for an older participant would in all probability be useful.
3. Seize Luka’s MVP odds
You’ve got all heard the hype by now. Luka Dončić is in the perfect form of his life. He is able to show the Mavericks mistaken for buying and selling him. All of that was true earlier than James went down, however what modifications is his rapid statistical upside. The Lakers have as a lot ball-handling as any workforce within the NBA. Even when Dončić has the perfect season of his profession, it could not present up statistically as a result of he’ll in all probability have the ball much less enjoying subsequent to James and Reaves than he did in Dallas. For those who have been on the lookout for a cause to doubt his MVP candidacy, that was it.
Sure, James ought to return moderately early within the season, however narratives type rapidly. If Dončić bursts out of the gate posting 30-point triple-doubles carrying an undermanned Lakers workforce, that is going to attract fairly a little bit of consideration. Even when he does not preserve that quantity after James returns, narratives matter in MVP races. He now has an opportunity to seize an early lead with the entire league watching. Dončić has longer MVP odds than both of the previous two winners, Nikola Jokić and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The very best worth on the board, as of Thursday night, was +400 at Bet365. Whether or not or not these odds are truthful is debatable, however I might say Dončić is barely likelier to mount a successful MVP case right now than he was yesterday.
