The 2019-20 Los Angeles Lakers team was slept on heading into the regular season, but all the ingredients of a championship squad were there.
Led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers were one of the most dominant teams in the league and overcame plenty of obstacles to capture the 2020 NBA Championship.
The roster was built almost perfectly to complement James and Davis as they had size, length and defense at every position. Danny Green was a key role player for Los Angeles as he was able to knock down open 3-pointers and defend guards and wings.
In an appearance on All the Smoke, Green reflected on the 2019-20 roster and believes it actually had too much talent:
“We was rolling, man. I had one of the most fun seasons on the court with Toronto. One of the most fun seasons off the court with L.A. before COVID hit. On the court it was fun, too, but it was a tough job for Frank [Vogel]. We had too many guys. Who are you going to play? We got Kuz, we got KCP, Avery Bradley, Swish came later. We had Cuz [DeMarcus Cousins] early on, he was rehabbing. But AD, JaVale, Dwight coming off the bench. We had Kuz playing the four, we ended up getting Markieff Morris later on. But, Bron, Rondo…we had all these defensive guys and guys that can hoop too. We were going, 10, 12 deep. Minutes is hard to come by. Early on I was playing like 28 minutes then it was like I would play the first six minutes, sit the next 12 and then finish the half. It’s hard to get a rhythm. And then finishing the game, it would be different guys. In the Bubble, AB, Avery didn’t come so KCP transitioned a little better and I guess the minutes a little better for everybody. We had too much talent, but it was a lot of fun. We was enjoying the group, went everywhere. Wherever we went, we did something. Dinner, go out, kick it. Even in Utah, we had a blast. We had Cuz with us, Troy Daniels was with us for a second. I think he left went to Denver and then Cuz left and that’s when we picked up J.R. and Dion.”
Former head coach Frank Vogel had plenty of options for games given the depth of the roster, and Green started games before sometimes sitting to close the out. However, that doesn’t eliminate the two-way impact he had when on the floor.
Although the 2020 team won the title, the front office decided to break up the group much to the dismay of some of the players. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was also a key member of the squad and believes the 2020 Lakers would have won more championships had they been allowed to stay together.
Regardless, that team will live in franchise lore forever as the group that captured the organization’s 17th title.
Jeanie Buss reveals potential plans to honor 2020 Lakers championship team
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