The Los Angeles Lakers didn’t do much to silence their critics during the preseason. They lost 6 straight games and with the NBA season just around the corner, some believe they’re far behind schedule.
Rob Pelinka made plenty of moves in the offseason and added multiple veterans to the team. Most of their core is gone and it’s normal to think that it’ll take some time before they fulfill their potential.
A lot of people have pointed out Russell Westbrook for the team’s bad performances. He was a turnover machine during the preseason and only raised more doubts about his fit next to LeBron James.
Lakers News: LeBron James Says Russell Westbrook Will Open Up Space For Him And Anthony Davis
Nonetheless, The King is still pretty excited about playing next to the former MVP. He believes that his drives and playmaking will take a lot of pressure off his shoulders and that it will also benefit Anthony Davis:
"Well, one thing [Russell Westbrook] does do, well, both us on the floor, it takes a set of two eyes off of us individually,” James told the media. “Now when the ball is swung to us, we just attack. We’ve grown so accustomed over the years of having teams key on us when we bring the ball in transition, defenses loading early not wanting us to get into the paint and break the defense down. When both of us on now different sides, if one of us are bringing the ball down and we get the defense shift on this side, quick swing to the other side, now we’re able to go with not a set of three or four eyes looking at us. So, it’s just constant pressure that we’re going to put on defense. Ultimately, it’s going to help AD. It’s going to help our shooters it’s going to help everybody on the floor because we can bring down the defense at a high level."
It's too early to sound off the alarms. It’s just the preseason. Good things take time. But it’s the Los Angeles Lakers we’re talking about, and patience may run short if they don’t start playing well after a couple of weeks.
