Times have been a bit stressful for the Los Angeles Lakers recently, but it seems like Saturday night’s win against the New York Knicks calmed things down a tad.
“The mood in the Lakers’ locker room on Saturday night, particularly with [LeBron] James, was lighter than it had been earlier in the week,” wrote Lakers insider Jovan Buha. “Winning helps. But sometimes, airing things out helps, too. James made it clear where he stands. The ball is now in the Lakers’ court, to a large extent, with Thursday’s trade deadline looming.”
One dark cloud hanging over the team recently has been some of James’ social media activity.
⌛️
— LeBron James (@KingJames) January 31, 2024
🗽👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 3, 2024
Comments James made before the Saturday game did not really do much to calm any nerves from Lakers fans, though it should be noted that Rich Paul — James’ agent — recently killed any speculation about the four-time champion being possibly dealt away from the team. The superstar’s long-term future remains more of a question mark.
The NBA trade deadline is now just a few days away (Feb. 8), which makes for lots of uncertainty, especially given the fact that the Lakers got pretty busy prior to last season’s deadline while being in a worse situation.
As things currently stand, Los Angeles is 26-25 and in ninth place in the Western Conference. Right before last season’s trade deadline (Feb. 9, 2023), the Lakers were 25-30.
Of course, the team went on to make it to the Western Conference Finals after trading away players like Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley and acquiring others like D’Angelo Russell and Jarred Vanderbilt.
Perhaps similar moves are in store for the team this season, but only time will tell. In the wake of troubling injury news received regarding Vanderbilt, the Lakers are reportedly putting a”greater emphasis” on adding a defensive wing.
There’s “concern” that Jarred Vanderbilt could miss the rest of the season, per @wojespn
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) February 4, 2024
Players like Dorian Finney-Smith, Royce O’Neale and Bruce Brown have all been linked to the Lakers and are defensive wings that would surely help the team in many ways.
Finney-Smith and O’Neale both play for the Brooklyn Nets, while Brown is with the Toronto Raptors after being sent there by the Indiana Pacers in the Pascal Siakam trade.
Los Angeles’ last game before the trade deadline passes is on Monday night at the Charlotte Hornets. A win against them would probably make the mood in the Lakers locker room even lighter.
