Handing Luke Walton keys to the Los Angeles Lakers empire for the next five years signaled the start of something new. The face of Luke Walton is definitely “old”- figuratively- after playing and winning championships with the team alongside Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant, Walton is a known quantity in the yellow and purple land.
However, Walton’s internship under Golden State Warriors mastermind Steve Kerr represents the change from the old ways –literally this time-to the new. Scott’s lumbering, adverse to shooting three pointers style never stood a chance in today’s game of speed and marksmanship away from the basket.
L.A. Lakers is the biggest brand in the NBA for a reason. Aside operating in one of the world’s most coveted cities, the team, since the inception of the league been associated with players who have altered the history of the game.
The Boston Celtics hold the most trophies but the team cannot stake a claim in housing the NBA’s first superstar George Mikan like the Lakers did in Minneapolis prior to its move to the city of Angels. Neither can they boast of having a stellar collection of big men who top that of Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard.
The last remnant of what the Lakers used to be, Kobe Bryant is gone and with his departure, a new era is here. Yes the glory days of winning championships, qualifying to the postseason eyes closed are over and a fresh start is here.
Nearly half of the team’s roster for the upcoming season is below 23 years and younger with Brandon Ingram, D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, Larry Nance Jnr, and Ivica Zubac yet to play more than two seasons in the league. In short, the side is building for the future with a collection of young studs who will be guided by veteran players like Timofey Mozgov, Luol Deng and Metta World Peace. Fortunately for the Lakers, management has drafted right by getting drfatees who look the part of becoming major factors in restoring glory to the franchise and in Walton, Lakers has the NBA’s youngest and one of the best basketball brains on the sidelines to make it happen.
What happens next lies outside the control of management as other variables including disciplinary issues and loss of form, can affect the project. Chief among the just mentioned variables is injury and the Lakers are all too aware of that.
In a quick attempt to get back into contention, several deals were made to get Dwight Howard and Steve Nash to play alongside Bryant under Mike D’Antoni. The team sizzled but never cooked as multiple ailments robbed all three, Nash particularly, from extensive playing time together. Though this team differs sharply from that of Bryant’s failed attempt to match Michael Jordan’s title tally, the underlining factor behind the demise of the former can be for the new look Lakers team. Injuries can alter the script of a rebuilding side like the Lakers and they only need look out east to put a lid on the ecstasy. In the Eastern Conference, Sam Hinkie’s ultimate project to take Philadelphia Sixers through the mud en route to a major championship outfit got undone by malaises that befell prized assets Jahlil Okafor, Joel Embiid and recently Ben Simmons.
Had all gone well, the Sixers ought to have been the conference’ version of the Utah Jazz; a collection of standout young players primed to make the playoffs due to maturity and the unmistakable fact proven veterans in George Hill, Boris Diaw and Joe Johnson’s additions will take them over the edge. Key in the equation is Embiid, who is yet to play in an official NBA game after getting drafted third overall in 2014. The Cameroonian Center’s career has been derailed by multiple injuries to his back and foot forcing the Sixers to draft another Center beside Noel in Okafor and in turn overstocking one position to the detriment of other spots on the floor.
Embiid has finally started playing and it is becoming increasingly easy to see why Hinkie drafted him knowing he was injured as Embiid- who has grown two inches more during his time out to stand at 7 foot 2 inches-has showcased a cherished blend of shooting, defense, strength and speed in preseason games played so far. Had Okafor not injured his knee in his first season in the league, Philadelphia looked good to win more games than it did in 2015-2016 and who knows how many Sixers wins have been lost to Embiid’s long treatment.
To every Embiid, there is a D’Angelo Russell., to Okafor, there is Julius Randle, to every Nerlens Noel there is a Larry Nance Jnr. and to every Brandon Ingram, there is a Ben Simmons. In short, the Sixers mirror what the Lakers future looks like should things go ire which can only mean the road back to relevance will be marred by seemingly limitless losses.
By Yaw Adjei-Mintah
