The Los Angeles Lakers are stuck between a rock and a hard place.
On the one hand, they want to win, not only for the sake of Kobe Bryant (and his two-year, $48.5 million extension), but also because they're the Lakers and that's what they do. On the other hand, L.A. would be hard-pressed to compete for anything more than the seventh or eighth seed in the crowded Western Conference—if even that—given the mish-mash of a roster it now has on hand.
At least one member of the organization, though, seems to like what Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss have done with the place. "I like the roster Mitch and Jim have put together, a mix of youth and experienced guys, and I'm looking forward to working with them," new head coach Byron Scott said at his introductory press conference, via Mike Trudell of NBA.com.
It'll be up to Scott to decide whether youth or experience wins out, particularly as it pertains to the Lakers' frontcourt. The Lakers loaded up at power forward this summer—first by adding Julius Randle with the No. 7 pick in the 2014 NBA draft, then by signing Ed Davis and snatching Carlos Boozer off the amnesty waiver wire.
Davis figures to get the short end of the stick here, just as he did during his season-and-a-half with the Memphis Grizzlies.
The real intrigue here lies between Randle and Boozer. One of these two will start at power forward for the Lakers on opening night. Who gets the nod and how Scott sorts out that situation over the long haul of the 2014-15 campaign may prove a microcosm of the delicate crossroads at which the Lakers currently find themselves.
Randle is, for all intents and purposes, the future of the franchise. The 19-year-old Dallas native was a productive prodigy during his lone season at Kentucky. He averaged 15 points on 50.1 percent shooting from the field and 7.2 free-throw attempts to go along with 10.4 rebounds per game as ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
