2020-21 NBA Power Rankings: Are Lakers Just Getting Started?https://t.co/5erkZVt9Jg via @BleacherReport
— LakerTom (@LakerTom) October 13, 2020
1. Los Angeles Lakers
This could be a busy offseason for the Lakers, as a slew of their regulars, including Anthony Davis ($28.8 million), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope ($8.5 million) and Rajon Rondo ($2.7 million), hold player options. L.A. needs to find more shooting, and if it keeps the No. 28 pick, it might value floor over ceiling if it doesn’t have the most trust in its role players.
The front office has some work to do, but barring the wildly unexpected, Davis and James should remain side by side. That’s reason enough to lock in the champions at No. 1. When they shared the floor, the Lakers became cheat-code dominant. In case it wasn’t enough to outscore opponents by 8.0 points across 1,455 regular-season minutes, the powerful pair pumped that number to 14.8 in 566 playoff minutes.
“We know who we are,” James said, per NBA.com’s Michael C. Wright. “We know what we’re about. We want the best, seriously, every single day both on and off the floor for one another. We’re just not jealous of one another. I think that you align that with respect, I think the sky’s the limit.”
In Davis’ first Finals, he averaged 25.0 points, 10.7 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.0 blocks while compiling a brilliant 57.1/42.1/93.8 shooting slash and navigating around a heel injury. He didn’t receive a single Finals MVP vote, since James earned a unanimous honor with 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists.
The supporting cast sometimes sputtered around them and the half-court offense had some clunky moments, but none of it mattered. James and Davis powered the Lakers to their 17th title and cemented this squad as the team to beat until proven otherwise.
We just launched a dynasty.