The Los Angeles Lakers have been off to a great start for the 2019-20 NBA season but LeBron James and Anthony Davis have had to log a lot of minutes in order to get there.
Should the team consider lightening the load in order to keep them fresh for the 2029 NBA playoffs? Thus far, they haven’t been able to take advantage of many opportunities to rest Davis and James in blowout games due to the inability of the bench to maintain leads.
On this episode of the Lakers Nation Podcast, host Trevor Lane takes a look at what the Lakers can do to keep winning while still preserving James and Davis. Finding a backup point guard who can run the show and score a little bit would certainly help, which makes the rumors that Darren Collison could be coming out of retirement intriguing.
The Los Angeles Clippers will also pursue Collison, but a compelling case can be made the Lakers would be the better option for him. The Lakers have the ability to offer more money and a substantial role, though that could require Rajon Rondo to spend some time on the sideline.
However, Rondo’s struggles have become an issue over the last few weeks for the Lakers and if his shooting doesn’t come around to the form he showed at the beginning of the season, head coach Frank Vogel may have no choice but to replace him in the rotation. Over the last nine games, Rondo is shooting an abysmal 18 percent on wide-open three-pointers, which is part of the reason why the bench unit has struggled. Can he turn it around or is another solution needed?
The first All-Star voting return is also brought up with James trailing Luka Doncic in overall votes. Alex Caruso and Dwight Howard also made surprise appearances on the list, though that’s unlikely to last once the media and player votes are factored in.
Talen Horton-Tucker has also been making a splash in the G League but should he be brought up to the NBA? Can he help the Lakers on the wing or should they let him continue to develop with the South Bay Lakers?
Finally, Lane takes questions about the team’s trade possibilities, buyout market, future cap space, possible fits around the league, and a ton more.
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