The Los Angeles Lakers ended the 2022-23 NBA season much better than expected. Following a lackluster start, LeBron James and company ended up reaching the Conference Finals thanks to an impressive resurgence in the second half of the campaign.
Of course, Rob Pelinka deserves credit for reacting just in time before the February deadline. That being said, Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets were too much for James and company, which is why changes will be made this offseason.
Having a deep playoff run is always nice, but at the end of the day, that will never be enough for a franchise like the Lakers. This team wants to succeed, and the front office has already started to make moves to make it happen.
Lakers waive Mo Bamba and Shaquille Harrison
The Los Angeles Lakers announced Thursday they are waiving center Mo Bamba and guard Shaquille Harrison. Neither of them had much playing time last season, recording less than 10 appearances each.
Bamba arrived at the February deadline as part of a four-team trade involving the Magic, Clippers and Nuggets. While injuries stood in his way, he didn’t see the floor that much even when healthy.
Harrison, on the other hand, joined the team in April ahead of the postseason and made just eight appearances which went practically unnoticed.
James could lose a third Lakers teammate soon
Another player who could leave LA is Malik Beasley, since the purple and gold reportedly have no plans to exercise his $16.5 million team option. Either way, at some point the Lakers will have to start looking to add teammates for LeBron rather than releasing them.
