And only if a long list of other things happen, too.
Atop that list may be the only other two Lakers who have been dominant in the league, and the only two who can give this team an identity besides Kobe: Steve Nash, a two-time NBA MVP, and Jeremy Lin, who for three weeks became a phenomenon that transcended the league and the entire sports world.
If they can provide a superior level of point guard play at a time when the Lakers enter the season expected to be quite inferior at that key position, the team will have a foundation.
For all the attention that Byron Scott rightly intends to place on upgrading the team’s defense, that end is not going to be anything special. The Lakers had better be a consistently stellar offensive team if they're going to beat people, and the only way that happens is if Nash and Lin combine to orchestrate an attack the beautiful way they have before.
Interesting intangibles are at work here, too.
Despite how poorly things have gone for Nash as a Laker, there are those in the organization who would vouch for him as an even better guy than Pau Gasol. If Nash can have success here at the age of 40 after all his injury setbacks, he’s going to appreciate it to the nth degree—and imbue the Lakers’ locker room with a positive energy the team desperately needs if it is to overachieve.
Lin, 26, has been a well-appreciated teammate on his clubs in much the same way, being unassuming despite his outsized fame, truly wanting the best for those around him. Given the ardent interest throughout Southern California in Lin as an Asian-American, Lin having success would turn into its own fireball of momentum for the Lakers to ride.
Nash has long been a strong supporter of Lin, who came to L.A. last summe...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
