Should the Lakers Go All in on A Rebuild?

[manlisten]

If the Lakers had a 39 year old Kobe still playing at an all NBA level with stretches where he still looks top 10 and paired with prime AD, it would probably be close to unanimous that you should do what you can within reason to try and squeeze out one more championship because that's obviously the best team you're going to build for the next decade. But because it's LeBron who Laker fans have no attachment to or even respect for in some cases, everyone is eager to lose as many games as possible and hopefully, maybe, possibly end up with a player that can give 80% of what even this twilight version of LeBron is giving you.
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It was reminiscent of one of those Most Interesting Man in the World advertisements: "I don't always shoot 6-for-28 from the field, but when I do, I become the youngest player in league history to score 28,000 career points."

[SGV-Laker fan]

[manlisten]

[lakid]

[ribeye]

There is NO WAY any of us can answer this intelligently. Any decision must be made in accordance with what other teams can and want to do and when they can and want to do it. Without knowing this on a day by day, hour by hour, or even possibly, a minute by minute basis, why bother?
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"A metronome keeps time by using a Ringo"

[LakerLanny]

The rebuild strategy didn't go so well the last time they tried it.

Those seasons were long and painful, better draft well if going down that road.
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Love, Laker Lanny

[fansincemagic]

Reality is that they'll give LBJ his 3 yr deal and won't trade AD. I'd like to cash out on AD in light of some of these rich returns like OKC can offer but this is fantasy.

We are trying to win now, but I went with option 3 so they don't cripple the roster post LBJ. I dread that they'll give away 3 1sts and a pick swapbor two for a big name that won't make them a contender. I don't trust the FO to not make another WB deal. I'll take the drama of LBJ's squandered last few years over having to wait til 2030 to start over.

[Halflife]

The one thing we know for sure was that Bron and AD we’re perfectly healthy last year and even though he’s flawed, they had a legit 3rd option and still landed in the playin with the question even being floated out there, if a bron, ad led team should lose to avoid playing another team.
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Kobe.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Clw9scopegx/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

[Dominic1981]

Celtics traded KG/Pierce for 4 first round picks and have now reaped the benefits.

If the Lakers want to reap future benefits they need to trade Lebron/AD for as many future 1sts as possible. Celtics had the patience to stick to a long term plan after they did that. We will see if the Lakers do. With Jeanie, they absolutely don’t

[deal]

I would enjoy a rebuild if we actually had a really talented FO
with the needed infrastructure needed to ID and develop talent,
but we don't have that FO.

This FO will milk gramps and pay him a crazy amount of money
to simply fill seats.

Sucks.
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Lakers need to build a freaking team !

[Denny_Russo]

They have to wait at least a year to rebuild because Pels have the pick. FO is going all in with JJ, Bron and AD unfortunately, so any talks of a rebuild right now are premature. It's just not happening this season.

Agree that the window closed after the WB trade. I think most people saw it coming, but were not fully prepared for how bad it was going to be.

Rob broke up a championship core when all he needed to do was make incremental changes the way Boston did. That's not on Bron and AD, who are carrying a big burden. That's just an issue of incompetence with the higher ups running this show.
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Yi Jianlian Fanboy. Respect The Chair.
Starting anew. I'm retiring my main.

[deal]

[Japago]

People just don't understand what it actually means to rebuild.

Say the Lakers kept all of their assets and tried to build naturally. They had a number 7 pick, 3 straight number 2 picks, and they even got a number 4 pick that they traded immediately for AD.

The Lakers got a lot of "steals" in the draft during that time period like Hart, Nance, Clarkson, and Zubac. I would mention Kuzma, but that was the result of trading away DLo.

After ALL of that, how close would the Lakers be to contending? Not close at all. The Lakers would be as close to a chip as when they started rebuilding.

The Lakers don't have good chance to win another ring with LeBron and AD. And yet, the Lakers should still go that route because it's the only chance they have within AT LEAST the next 10+ years or so.

People think the Lakers are just going to get a superstar within a reasonable time frame and will be able to put things together in a quick fashion. It just doesn't usually work out that way. The Thunder drafted 3 MVPs and never got a ring. It took the Celtics a LONG time and several failed supporting casts to eventually win 1 with Tatum and Brown. The Nuggets got all time luck in getting a superstar in the 2nd round, and they may be a 1 and done.

Teams are rebuilding organically most of the time, and how often do those result in rings? The 3rd winning-est team won all of their rings with 1 core. These are teams with 50+ year histories.

The best player the Lakers drafted is probably going to another team to try to be their 3rd best player.

It's so idealized, it's funny.

It's like wanting to win the lottery and basing decisions on assuming you'll win it in the future.

[lakurluv]

More important than a rebuild for the Lakers Franchise would be to for the ownership to sell and completely get out of the basketball business. Ever since Jerry (RIP) Left, it's been mostly down-hill from there! Except for the Phil Jackson Years, where they should have made him an exec!

[manlisten]

[Halflife]

[slavavov]

If there's a pathway to competing for the NBA championship next season, you gotta head down that path.

Remember that if and when we rebuild, whether it's now or later, we could go decades without competing for the world title, let alone winning it. So if we can contend for the chip right now, why the hell should we rebuild right now?
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Lakers 49ers Chargers Dodgers

[vakobe]

[ThePageDude]

[dcarter4kobe]

Trading up for a late first with Collier would have really had me excited for young core

Collier/Knecht/Christie would have been a solid foundational core that compliments each other well. Still with Max Lewis who was projected as a 1st in many mocks.
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"He's a Zen master, so he can speak to you, and he doesn't need a microphone; you can hear him in your head, 'Ron, don't shoot, don't shoot.' Whatever, pow, three. I love the Zen, though."

[manlisten]

[venturalakersfan]

[dcarter4kobe]

Bump.
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"He's a Zen master, so he can speak to you, and he doesn't need a microphone; you can hear him in your head, 'Ron, don't shoot, don't shoot.' Whatever, pow, three. I love the Zen, though."

[dcarter4kobe]

I will say, going in on a rebuild with Pelkina still in charge is scary.
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"He's a Zen master, so he can speak to you, and he doesn't need a microphone; you can hear him in your head, 'Ron, don't shoot, don't shoot.' Whatever, pow, three. I love the Zen, though."

[Hammett]