ESPN Big-Three Tiers (Top 3 Players on team)

Aloha, Michael,

Great Thanksgiving article and Lakers fans sure have a lot to be thankful for.
You brought up some very interesting points in your great post that deserve some comments. I think you could be onto something about the league shifting from ‘Defense wins championships’ to ‘Offense wins championships.’

That’s an astute observation that’s supported by a lot of data so far this season. A great post on said it perfectly: “The Lakers OFFENSE needs to reach some semblance level of potent that the Thunder DEFENSE has in order to have a puncher’s chance to beat them in a series.

Hard not to feel bad for AD. Loved seeing Rui go up and give him a hug when he looked so forlorn. Hope the Mavs don’t trade AD and he gets a chance with a healthy Kyrie to show what a great player he is. Sports as a business can be brutally cold at times.

Love how LeBron has eagerly become our third option while Reaves has elevated himself to be the team’s second option and a candidate to be All-NBA rather than just an All-Star. With the All-Star game at Crypto, I want to see Luka, LeBron, and Austin voted in by Lakers fans as starters. That’s something we’re going to have to work hard to accomplish. Can’t leave one of those three out of the All-Star game. Come on, Lakers fans.

Agree 100% about Lopez and Horford. If we use our draft pick this midseason, it has to be for a young player like Keon Ellis who can shoot the three and defend like a banshee. I’m done with giving up draft capital for players over 30. Use those picks for younger players with more upside.

Ayton is more important than most fans realize and he has been nothing short of great. He does have small hands and is not a great shot blocker or floor stretcher but the focus should be on what he can do, which is score, rebound, make smart decisions, and play hard. He’s outplayed so many supposedly ‘better’ centers that it’s hilarious he does not get more credit.

While I think it is possible that we might move on from Ayton for a modern center who could both protect the rim and stretch the floor, a better solution might be to find a mobile 4/5 who can do what Ayton can’t and could serve as the perfect complement to a double big lineup. Ironically, the 4/5 who would be perfect could be Anthony Davis. It’s why I would be interested in trading for Robert Williams or Jonathan Isaac to give us 10 to 12 high impact defensive minutes. We have enough at the five now to make a gamble like that imo.

Luka and Austin. Thank you, basketball gods.

My current position on Rui is we need to give him a raise and an extension but move him to the bench and make sure he gets twice as many wide open 3PA. We need to take and make more threes and we have a guy who just needs plays run to turn him into a volume 3-point shooter and legitimate 6MOY candidate. Lakers need to invest in Rui going forward. He just needs to make his offense even more valuable to counter his defensive shortcomings. Right now, our starters rank 30th in defense while our bench ranks 30th in offense. Moving Rui to the bench and giving him more touches and shots will help solve that imbalance.

I’m right there with you on the Lakers ‘nipping’ at the heels of the Thunder. I don’t think we will catch them in the regular season but give us a couple more players via trade and we can surprise them in the Western Conference Finals.

Outstanding post with excellent points and analysis. We need more of this from you. Be great if you starting writing articles on specific subjects that pique your interest.

GOOD STUFF, MAN, THANK YOU.