So far in the 23-24 season, Zhan Mei has a net efficiency of 7.8 in the total 551 minutes he has been on the field.
For comparison, among the duo in the league who have played at least 500 minutes combined, only Durant and Booker have a higher 9.3 than James.
In other words, as long as Zhan Mei stays healthy, the Lakers have the possibility of winning the championship. But the question is how Zhan Mei can stay healthy.
Explanation point: the proportion of shots. So far this season, James has accounted for 52.6% of his shots from the inside, and the value of thick eyebrows is 75.0%.
More than half, if not three-quarters, of shots come from the interior with more defensive intensity, which is clearly not conducive to staying healthy.
This is where Russell has to be mentioned.
In games where the Lakers won, Russell shot 61.1 percent from the field and 50.1 percent in games where they lost. In terms of data, it can only play the role of icing on the cake, and it cannot be used in the snow.
However, the good thing is that this 1+1 contract with an average salary of 18.5 million still has a certain transaction value. You must know that Van Vleet's immediate combat power is similar to Russell, but he signed a 3-year, 110 million contract with the Rockets.
In addition, as the schedule deepens, in addition to the Pistons and Jazz, there are also teams including the Bulls and the Trail Blazers that are ready to enter a rebuilding period.
Compared with the Bulls' LaVine and DeRozan, the ceiling is not high, and the Trail Blazers' poor record is more due to Lillard's departure from the Bucks. It's like losing Harden to the Rockets — their record is starting to slip rapidly.
Based on this, the Lakers can set their sights on Jeremy Grant for reinforcement.
Note 1: Data. So far this season, Grant has averaged 22.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, which shows that he is a good instant force, which is one of them. The average shooting rate of 9.2 breakthroughs per game is 46.3%, which shows that he has a good breakthrough ability. Potentially, it can share the pressure of James's attack.
Note 2: Contracts. Grant and the Trail Blazers still have a five-year, $160 million contract.
To sum up the above two points, Grant has a good instant combat power, and this 5-year contract of 160 million is the breakthrough of the Lakers trade.
As mentioned earlier, the Trail Blazers' rebuilding after a poor record is imminent. For a rebuilding team, the most desired thing is salary space and draft picks. And the Lakers have both of these things — Russell can use it to free up space and be added to the trade in the '28 first-rounder.
From Grant's point of view, the Lakers are certainly more attractive than the Trail Blazers. This not only refers to the possibility of winning the championship, but also the enhanced commercial value brought by this ultra-high exposure.
For the Lakers, getting Grant to form the Big Three again will not lose to the Nuggets.
On the one hand, James's instant combat power is not inferior to Jokic and Murray, and on the other hand, Grant can also play the role of Aaron Gordon and Porter Jr. More importantly, the Lakers also have Vanderbilt and Reddish on the defensive end.
In the end, the Lakers were able to get Grant thanks to Lillard's help. To be precise, it was the latter's departure from the Bucks that gave the Lakers a chance to get Grant.