The Los Angeles Lakers were quite active in the offseason, and while they didn’t make any big moves, last season’s late success showed that they didn’t need to do a lot anyway.
Rob Pelinka didn’t have a lot of cap space to work with, and one could argue that he made the most of it by adding plenty of depth to Darvin Ham’s team.
The Lakers re-signed Austin Reaves, D’Angelo Russell, and Rui Hachimura, and they signed Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, Cam Reddish, Jaxson Hayes, and now Christian Wood.
However, fans on Twitter weren’t that impressed with their moves, and they don’t exactly fear the Lakers right now.
Not a single move they made here moves me in the slightest
— ᴅ ʀ ᴇ ᴡ (@FeelLikeDrew) September 6, 2023
All this just to lose to Zion and Ingram
— Ingram Alerts (@IngramAlerts) September 6, 2023
Just to get bounced by dallas mavericks. Shouldve got kyrie while yall had the chance😈😈😈
— Kyrie’s Tribesman🤞🏾 (@NevaMiss24) September 6, 2023
All this to lose to Denver in 5
— Andrey (@DreBob0) September 6, 2023
Sadly I don’t think these moves are enough to get past Denver
— Saadiq (@3Diqq) September 6, 2023
Truth be told, none of the moves they made — except for maybe Austin Reaves — should be significant enough to even alter their playoff or championship odds, at least not on their own.
But altogether, the Lakers had a pretty decent offseason overall.
Of course, it’s more than evident that this team would only have a chance to compete because of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, as they wouldn’t even sniff the Play-in tournament if the guys they signed — again, except for maybe Reaves — were their main guys.
Still, depth and team chemistry could take any team a long way, and the Lakers are fresh off a trip to the Western Conference Finals.
But at the end of the day, their success — or lack thereof — will once again hang on their stars’ shoulders, and their title window won’t stay open for much longer.
NEXT: Christian Wood Shares First Reaction After Signing With Lakers
