Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said Thursday the franchise is preparing for a busy summer as the club looks to rebuild its roster after a bitterly disappointing first round exit in the NBA playoffs. The Lakers bowed out of the postseason in front of their home fans on Wednesday, losing 103-96 as the Minnesota Timberwolves wrapped up an emphatic 4-1 series victory.
The manner of the series defeat — the second year running the Lakers have exited in the first round — highlighted the flaws in a squad which had arguably flattered to deceive by finishing third in the Western Conference behind the offensive potency of LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Austin Reaves. The arrival of Doncic in February in a jaw-dropping trade from Dallas breathed new life into the Lakers’ regular season campaign. However, the departure of Anthony Davis in the same deal left the Lakers desperately short of physical heft at both ends of the court, a weakness that was ruthlessly exposed by the Timberwolves and their giant French center, Rudy Gobert.
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Pelinka said Thursday the Lakers had been forced to improvise their roster construction after Doncic’s arrival, but now planned to spend the offseason taking a more considered approach to the rebuild — with the acquisition of a big man the top priority. “When you make a seismic trade at the deadline, it’s kind of like trying to build an airplane in the sky,” Pelinka told reporters. “Now we have a chance to land the plane, put it in the hangar and really try and figure out what we need to retrofit and change, and that’s what we’ll do.”
“It’s very clear that this team and this roster needs more size and needs a center position. That’s a very clear and obvious byproduct of trading potentially the best big in the league to Dallas to get a point guard. Of course, that’s going to open up a huge hole. And as I said before, the trade deadline and the moments up to it don’t allow you the requisite time to explore every single unturned stone to add a big to our roster. We just didn’t have the time after the Luka trade. But now we do.”
While the 40-year-old James would not confirm on Wednesday how much longer he plans to play in the NBA, Pelinka indicated that he expects the veteran superstar to be part of the Lakers’ plans in future alongside Doncic and Reaves. “I think those three guys have incredible promise playing together,” Pelinka said. “And we will collectively do a better job to make sure they’re surrounded with the right pieces to have ultimate success. We’re going to put in the work to allow that group of guys to win a championship.”
While some of the tactical and personnel decisions made by the Lakers’ rookie head coach JJ Redick in the Timberwolves series have come under scrutiny, Pelinka said the organization continued to have full confidence in the 40-year-old. “He’s a great partner to work with, and he has an incredible basketball mind,” Pelinka said of Redick. “That’s exciting for the Lakers and our fanbase for the future.”
Redick, meanwhile, hinted he plans to put the Lakers through a grueling offseason fitness regime, stating the squad needed to be in “championship shape.” “I’ll start with the offseason and the work that’s required in an offseason to be in championship shape,” Redick said. “And we have a ways to go as a roster. Certainly, there are individuals that were in phenomenal shape. There’s certainly other ones that could have been in better shape. That’s where my mind goes immediately is we have to get in championship shape.”
© 2024 AFP
