Kobe Bryant is recovering from a brutal Achilles tear, Dwight Howard bolted for Houston and the Lakers had no cap space to sign the depth necessary to be considered a Western Conference contender. However, despite all of their apparent shortcomings, L.A. still has a solid core comprised of Bryant, Steve Nash and Pau Gasol.
The Lakers face a steep uphill battle this season, but if their big guns remain healthy they'll have an outside shot at sneaking into the playoffs.
Lakers 2012-13 results:
• 45-37 record (.549)
• 3rd in Pacific Division
• 7th in Western Conference
• Swept in Western Conference quarterfinals by San Antonio Spurs
Key Stats: The Good and the Bad
The Good: Mike D'Antoni's squads are notorious for pushing the pace in his patented "seven seconds or less" offense. Simply put, the more possessions you create, the more opportunities there are going to be for your team to score.
Not surprisingly, the Lakers had success from an offensive standpoint last season when it came to maximizing possessions. According to Basketball-Reference, the Lakers finished fifth in pace, generating an average of 94.4 possessions per 48 minutes. Thanks to their offensive scheme, the Lakers averaged 102.2 points per game, the sixth-best mark in the league. D'Antoni's teams are going to score buckets aplenty, but the real key will be defense. Speaking of which...
The Bad: For all of the positive offensive numbers the Lakers produced last season, there were an equal ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
