The 2019-20 NBA season is sadly on pause as the world deals with the global pandemic.
The league made the difficult decision to suspend all operations on March 11 after Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus. This came at a time where the Los Angeles Lakers were playing some of their best basketball and Danny Green believed they had what it took to win it all.
The Lakers had just completed a two-game sweep of the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers prior to the league’s suspension, and it came from LeBron James and Anthony Davis stepping up to the plate and making it happen.
Just before the league went on hiatus as a public safety measure, Green spoke about what makes the Lakers better suited to win it all than any other team, according to ‘Take it There’ with Taylor Rooks:
“Our leaders, our two stars. Also I think our depth, we have so many guys that can play well that we don’t have enough minutes to play in the game. But it’s not about us, it’s about the team, so we don’t really care about the minutes. As long as we’re winning and playing well, then guys are fine with it.”
When asked if the Lakers have what it takes to win it all, Green assuredly said yes and that it’s all about making it happen:
“For sure, definitely. We just have to do it, we can’t just expect it to happen. We have to make it happen. When playoff time comes, getting locked in and dialed in to the matchups that we have.”
To reiterate, these comments were made prior to the league’s suspension. However, all of these sentiments still hold true should the season return at some point.
The Lakers will still have that same leadership and depth and now everyone will be well-rested and ready to make a 2020 NBA Finals run. The Lakers finally got to the point where they were seriously considered favorites and that would be unlikely to change when the league eventually returns.
Now, beyond getting locked in for their playoff matchups, it will be about staying locked in on basketball when there’s no basketball to lock in on.