3. Will the Lakers' new supporting cast with Westbrook, Melo, Nunn, etc, be enough to help LeBron and AD get back to the promised land, or will it be a disaster?
we're finally talking Lakers.
Can they? Yes. Will they? Depends on two things. Health, and whether or not LeBron is willing to defer to Russ.
I would guess no to both.
I got to witness Russ up close and personal last season. He's electric. His energy is infectious. His shot selection was better. But he absolutely needs the ball in his hands. For half a season last year Brooks split the primary ball handling duties between Beal and Westbrook. Beal Les the league in scoring - and the Wizards sucked.
After the break he gave Russ full reign, and the team went on a crazy run to sneak into the playoffs.
Russ is not capable of playing off the ball. He can't shoot for shit. He's a dynamic force when he's the primary decision maker - and next to useless when he's off the ball. He also can't guard anyone - which will be a huge problem come spring.
LeBron has shown he can play off the ball when he was with Miami - and he was at his most dominant. How they're able to balance that - and whether LeBron is willing to defer - will decide how good they are.
LeBron is better than Russ, so it seems silly to ask the better player to defer - but Bron is still useful off the ball, Russ is useless. It's going to be fascinating.
One huge red flag about their winless preseason is just how damn slow they looked on defense. I mean they're starting DeAndre Jordan, who couldn't get off the bench for a Brooklyn team riddled with injuries last year.
They could be good, or they could be the Nash/Kobe/Howard Lakers... which is the correct washed Lakers comparison (not the Karl Malone Lakers, who would have won a title if not for Kobe's rape trial season ending with him jacking crazy triple teamed shots when Shaq was destroying "hall of famer" Ben Wallace. But I digress)