Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts during the second half against the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images
Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images
Former NBA player Byron Scott won three championships with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s, but he doesn’t see this current iteration of the team going all the way. On the latest episode of Byron Scott’s Fast Break podcast, Scott was asked whether the new-look Lakers are contenders or pretenders.
“I’m not going to say borderline,” Scott said. “They’re pretenders… I think they’ll make the playoffs, but again, to [Olden Polynice’s] point, defense wins championships still in this league. I know we glorify the threes and all the offense and things of that nature, but at the end of the day, you got to get stops, right?
“And [Walker] Kessler at the center position, he better average about eight blocks a game,” Scott added. “Because they going to be getting a lot of blowbys, and the guys going to get to that basket.”
Walker Kessler is the Lakers’ biggest summer acquisition, and they desperately needed a defensive anchor like him. The Lakers gave up two first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps to the Utah Jazz for Kessler and gave him a four-year, $130 million contract as part of a sign-and-trade.
Scott, who also coached the Lakers from 2014 to 2016, believes Kessler will help, but doesn’t see too many other good defensive players around him. Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves are the two other guaranteed starters, and both have had their struggles on that end of the floor.
Matisse Thybulle and Jarred Vanderbilt might be the Lakers’ best defenders, but it’s unclear how big a role they’ll play. Thybulle has missed time with injuries the last two seasons, while Vanderbilt’s limitations offensively mean he won’t be out there on the court for too long.
Speaking of offense, the Lakers should shine on that end of the floor with the backcourt of Doncic and Reaves leading the way. There is a lot of firepower, but history has shown that if you can’t defend at a high level, you won’t win the championship.
Scott isn’t the only one who thinks the Lakers will struggle on the defensive end. His co-host and fellow former NBA player Olden Polynice also called them pretenders and pointed to defense when asked why.
“Defense, period,” Polynice said. “Walker Kessler, great defender, but it’s in the paint… He’s a rim protector, but teams nowadays are outside in. So, the rest of the guys, it’s going to be a struggle. So, I’ll say they’re kind of borderline, but more pretender than contender.”
Now, Polynice had previously said the Lakers might be the 10th seed in the Western Conference. The 61-year-old sure has changed his mind since, given he now thinks they’re a borderline pretender.
As for Scott, he felt then that the Lakers’ ceiling was the Conference Semifinals. That is probably as far as they’ll go.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs were the top two seeds in the West last season, and unless there’s a massive injury crisis, they’ll repeat that feat. That would mean the Lakers would likely have to beat either the Thunder or the Spurs in a playoff series to get to the Conference Finals. Can they? Well, anything is possible, but it seems highly unlikely.
Another former Laker, Derek Fisher, also thinks they are missing pieces compared to the Thunder and the Spurs. They are not as complete as those juggernauts.
It’s not just former Lakers players who have doubts. ESPN’s insiders predict they’ll be the most disappointing team next season. They have also projected the Lakers to win 45 games, down from 53 in 2025-26.
If Doncic, Reaves, and Kessler are healthy, though, the Lakers should get about 50 wins. You can win a lot of regular-season games with a high-powered offense, and that should prove to be the case here.
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