Wow, the Los Angeles Lakers received a swift kick in the pants on Sunday. Their most recent loss to the Toronto Raptors gave them their third loss in a row, and even with LeBron James and Anthony Davis back, the defending champs look very vulnerable. The Lakers are in a three-way tie for the Western Conference's 5th seed, and are the most in danger of falling to the 7th due to head-to-head records against the other two teams.
What now? Well, for a championship team like the Lakers, it's simply time to wake up.
Age or not, LeBron James is only one star. We've seen what one lonely star could do with the weight of the world on their shoulders: LeBron's first stint in Cleveland, Kobe alone on the Lakers, Jordan in the 80's, these were all great runs, but all ended in disappointment.
The Lakers have been despairing without LeBron James and to a lesser extent, Anthony Davis for the past couple of months. Now that they're back, it's temptingly easy to just coast on laurels and reputation with the trust and belief that those two will lead them to the promise land once more.
Newsflash to NBA teams: it is not enough to just snatch up all the star power you can. That mentality led to the 2004 Lakers, caused questions about the Brooklyn Nets this year, and honestly, led to the downfall of the Los Angeles Clippers in last year's bubble. Once teams get used to your talent and are able to scheme for you, chemistry and intelligence win the day. How do you think the Tim Duncan-led Spurs won five rings?
This Lakers team knows that, and LeBron James knows that. They exemplified this rope-a-dope, flip-the-switch mentality in last year's bubble. Remember how they went 0-3, and usually lost the first game of every round in the playoffs? James' teams love to analyze their foes, as well as themselves, before going for the kill.
But this team shouldn't rely on LeBron's skill, or that switch to come on when the going gets tough. After all, switches don't flip on their own. Andre Drummond and Dennis Schroder are both much better in a vacuum than Rajon Rondo and Dwight Howard/JaVale McGee. However, Rondo and Dwight were both coming to the Lakers with Finals experience. Neither Drummond or Schroder have proven to be definitive x-factors on a playoff team, and they are ironically the least seasoned players on this team in that regard.
Now, all of this is a moot point. Again, historically, LeBron-led teams like to take their foot off of the gas as the season wanes if they feel comfortable enough with the situation that they're in. But if LeBron's statements about the play-in tournament are anything to be analyzed, this team is anything but comfortable. They need to gel, communicate, and get up to speed fast before someone takes advantage of their losing streak.
LeBron, we know that you just got back, and that you rushed to get back into form. But you and this team need to wake up, otherwise you'll see someone else hoisting the Larry O'Brien trophy from home.
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