LeBron James isn't returning to the Lakers, officially starting the Luka Doncic era in Los Angeles. GM Rob Pelinka has made offseason moves to find pieces that complement their star guard, attempting to follow a similar blueprint that led the Dallas Mavericks to their Doncic-led Finals appearance in 2024.
They pulled off a blockbuster with the Utah Jazz to acquire Walker Kessler, finally giving Doncic a reliable big man he loves to have at his disposal. Pelinka then followed up that trade with savvy free agency signings, landing Collin Sexton, Quentin Grimes, and Sandro Mamukelashvili.
The one thing still missing from the equation? Two-way wings.
The Lakers have nobody to contain Deni Avdija
Looking at the Lakers' updated depth chart, this team has absolutely nobody to even remotely contain Deni Avdija when they matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers. A starting lineup of Doncic, Austin Reaves, Jake LaRavia, Mamukelashvili, and Kessler is one traffic cone after another.
Pelinka is arguably the most overrated GM in all of basketball, and those flaws have been somewhat masked by the greatness of James. Now, he's dug the Lakers in a hole by going all-in for this new wave Doncic era. They aren't good enough to truly contend, have no tradable first-round picks for the next seven seasons, and have committed a total of $475 million to the trio of Doncic, Reaves, and Kessler.
That's still a playoff-caliber team, but it's going to be incredibly matchup-dependent. One wrong series matchup and this team is out of the playoffs. A team like Portland can rely heavily on its new All-Star in Deni Avdija to take advantage of the Lakers' lack of defense on the wings. Nobody has the combination of speed and size to contain him. And once Avdija collapses the defense, Portland will finally have shooting with Damian Lillard out on the perimeter.
The Lakers likely aren't done with their offseason moves and should eventually address their forward depth. But whether it's Rui Hachimura or someone brought in externally, this roster isn't well equipped to contain Avdija.
There are better teams than the Blazers in the Western Conference, but it's difficult to pinpoint a team better positioned to capitalize on the Lakers' lackluster wing defense. With Kawhi Leonard and potentially LeBron James heading to the Eastern Conference, Portland suddenly finds itself with the only forward capable of initiating offense in a point-forward role.
Avdija was already a matchup nightmare around the league, but it should be on full display when this Blazers team matches up against the Lakers this season. Who knows, it even could be just the thing that advances them to the next round of the playoffs.
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