The Los Angeles Lakers in 2015-16 were just pathetic. There are those who would say it is the fact that they do not have any good players on their roster. To that I would reply that they have five good players. D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Julius Randle, Larry Nance Jr., and, with the second overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft, Brandon Ingram. They also have serviceable players, like Roy Hibbert, Marcelo Huertas, and even Nick Young. They also drafted a center with their second round pick, but I expect him to keep playing overseas while the Lakers retain his NBA rights.
The biggest problem with the Lakers? We need look no further than the head coach, Byron Scott. Coaching can take a bad team to the playoffs, and it can keep a decent team out of them. Coaches matter. With new head coach Luke Walton taking over, since he can relate better to younger players than Scott did, with the roster the Lakers have right now, they can compete for the eight-seed in the Western Conference. If the Lakers can acquire two or more quality free agents, like Kevin Durant or Paul George, they can easily go deep into the postseason.
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