With Murray's defensive stunner in the face of Rivers, the Lakers fell 1:4 at the feet of the Nuggets again, and the Lakers played very tenaciously this season, but there were 3 main reasons why the Lakers lost again. Coach Cephalosporin's on-the-spot command and adaptability was completely defeated by Zhuge Ma Long. At the age of 39, James was plagued by physical effects every fourth quarter, which had a significant impact on the game. Many of the forward defensive giants that the Lakers brought in in in the summer were unable to play due to injuries, and the Lakers' player size was significantly lower than that of the Nuggets, which was also an important reason for the loss.
At the age of 39, the elder Zhan still dragged the team forward, scoring a quasi-triple-double of 30 points, 9 rebounds and 11 assists in the final game, and had 4 steals on the defensive end. This round of the series averaged 39.8 minutes per game, can cut 27.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 8.8 assists, 2.4 steals, shooting 56.6%, three-point shooting rate as high as 38.5%, free throw shooting rate of 73.9% is not bad, Lao Zhan left the court with regret, loneliness and unwillingness followed. With the Lakers once again out of contention for a championship this season, three ripple effects are bound to occur. The Lakers need to make a change, otherwise it will be even more difficult for James to challenge for a championship at the age of 40 next season, and perhaps a big trade with the Suns can break the game.
One, Coach Ham will not be on the Lakers' coaching staff next season.
Defeated by the Nuggets for two consecutive seasons. Coach Cephalosporin does not have any strategy to deal with it, his reflexes on the field are very weak, and he doesn't know how many games he has called out to solve the problems on the field, or leave some time for Lao Zhan to rest. However, in the final game, he actually used up the Lakers' timeout early, causing the Lakers to be unable to play an effective playmaking attack when they trailed by two points in the final 3.6 seconds.
There are many famous coaches on the market for the Lakers to choose from, and the former championship coach of the Bucks, Budenholzer, is a good choice, with a super high IQ and a rich career teaching resume. As a championship coach, he has the ability to keep James in check. If the Lakers replace Cephalosporin and hire Budenholzer as head coach, then the Lakers have a lot of hope next season.
Second, James is determined to jump out of the contract, and whether he can renew his contract with the Lakers will also be a big question mark, and it depends on the Lakers' summer operation.
After the Lake James Lakers were eliminated by the Nuggets yesterday, reporters asked James after the game if this was his last game for the Lakers? James' response was: I don't answer that question. However, according to basketball expert Sams, James is set to jump out of his contract in the summer. The latest odds show that he has the second probability of going to his old club, the Cavaliers, and staying with the Lakers is first. Of course, he may also choose to join Curry to join the Warriors, and after the end of this season, several of the biggest stars of the U.S. Olympics will compete together, and they will have time to discuss the possibility of playing together.
However, James is still favored by the Lakers management to stay with the Lakers, after all, the Lakers can provide him with a three-year contract of 160 million, which can ensure that he can get a big contract of more than 50 million at the age of 42. In addition, James's business is concentrated in Los Angeles, and after he retires, he will definitely have to sit on the big market of Los Angeles, and he will not choose to leave easily.
At the same time, James' interior partner Davis is also a tough player, although he has reached the age of 30, but this season, he is at the peak of his career, and he is playing very tough in this series against the Nuggets. Although he didn't have a good performance in Game 5, he was stuck with a shoulder injury, otherwise he would have been able to put up more violent statistics. Thick eyebrows have completed a three-year $180 million contract extension with the Lakers in advance, and this season thick eyebrows can average 27.8 points, 15.6 rebounds, 4 assists and 1.6 blocks per game against the Nuggets, with a shooting rate of 63.4%, which is an important helper for James.
Three, the Lakers are determined to make a trade, otherwise they will definitely not be able to make a difference next season. A 5-for-1 trade with the Suns for Durant can break the game.
The Suns are after getting Durant and Beal. This season's record is quite sluggish, reaching the playoffs as sixth, but the performance in the playoffs is quite sluggish, and the Timberwolves are swept out 0:4. The Suns don't have any first-round picks for the next six years, which makes people look no hope, and only a trade can break the game.
Booker averaged 26 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game in the playoffs. He's a superstar that the Suns have single-handedly developed, and the Suns won't trade him easily, he's still young and there's still potential to be tapped. In addition, Beal has a three-year, $160 million contract. Veto power in hand. The Suns can't easily send him away, no team wants to be the pick-up man, injuries and big contract implications, and Beal's trade value in the market is very low.
The only shot that the Suns can take is Durant, the 35-year-old Durant is still very brave this season, in the face of the Timberwolves' iron-blooded defense, he can still contribute an average of 26 points per game, in this series, Durant played an average of 42 minutes per game, and could cut 26.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.5 blocks, and the efficiency is also very high.
The Lakers could make a deal with the Suns and send Russell, Vincent, Hachimura and Reddis, plus a 2029 first-round pick, and maybe the Suns would agree. Russell and Vincent can bring playmaking to the Suns. After all, the Suns lack good playmaking guards, and Hachimura and Reddis can provide the Suns with defensive and offensive capabilities at the front, which is also lacking in the Suns. The 2029 first-round pick would also guarantee the Suns more possibilities in the future.
After the Lakers get Durant, they can realize that James and Durant will join forces, although they can't be compared with their peak, but they still have a lot of court destructiveness. If the Lakers can get Durant, then they can send Rivers, James, Vanderbilt, Durant, Davis's starting lineup next season, offensive and defensive, quite strong, fully capable of fighting with the Nuggets, and adding a few bench players in the offseason, a big thing can be done.